Step into a world of quiet strength and vivid imagination as the Plateau Creative Arts Center presents the pastel works of Katie Smith during Gallery Opening Night, Friday, Oct. 3, from 5–7 p.m.
“This is a great opportunity to meet Katie, mingle with local artists, and enjoy light refreshments—including wine and non-alcoholic beverages,” said Amy Nichols, a member of the arts center’s marketing committee.
The main gallery exhibit in October will showcase the Members Art Challenge: 4×4 Mosaics, which Nichols said is “back by popular demand.” Artwork is created on 4-by-4-inch pieces in any medium and displayed together to create a mosaic artwork.
“In a sunlit studio nestled among the trees of Fairfield Glade, artist Katie Smith creates pastel works that speak with quiet strength and vivid imagination,” Nichols said. “Her upcoming exhibition invites viewers to experience not only the beauty of her art, but the extraordinary journey behind it.”
At age 15, Smith’s life took an unexpected turn when she suffered a brain stem stroke that left her unable to walk or swallow. A subsequent laryngectomy removed her ability to speak.
Years of intensive physical therapy followed, during which Smith gradually regained control of her left arm and hand. It was through this process that she was introduced to pastels — first as a therapeutic tool, and eventually as a creative calling.
“Katie’s artwork is not copied from life,” Nichols said. “Each piece emerges from her imagination, shaped by intuition and a quiet dialogue between artist and paper. She lets the paper guide her, responding with color, form, and feeling. The result is a body of work that is deeply personal, emotionally resonant, and entirely original.”
Her compositions often reflect nature’s serenity, rendered in soft textures and flowing lines.
“Her studio is a sanctuary where creativity flourishes,” Nichols said. “Living with her parents in a cozy, independent space within their home, Katie paints in a way that defies conventional boundaries. Her art is unfiltered, unreplicated, and full of quiet power.”
Smith holds a degree in art from Kennesaw State University in Georgia. Her influences include Georgia O’Keeffe, whose adventurous interpretation of nature and flowing lines inspire Smith’s own style. She is also influenced by Mark Rothko, whose bold use of color invites viewers to not only see the art, but to become part of it.
“This exhibition is more than a display—it’s an invitation to witness imagination unbound by physical limitations,” Nichols said. “Katie Smith’s journey is not defined by limitations, but by transformation — of challenge into beauty, silence into expression, and stillness into strength. Her pastel compositions speak in whispers. Her art lingers. And behind every stroke is a quiet conviction, echoed in the words she signs beneath each email: ‘God doesn’t call the equipped, Smith’s work is inspired by nature.
“In nature there are no rights or wrongs, it is perfect in its imperfection,” she said. “Honestly though inspiration can be found anywhere you just have to open your eyes wide enough to see it.”
Smith participated in Georgia Artists With Disabilities, a extensive Atlanta, GA-based group that celebrated its members’ abilities. She said the group’s extensive fall show always left her inspired and humbled.
“Artists that drew with their feet, mouths and combinations of both,” she said. “How can you see that determination to share the beauty within them and not be inspired?”
Smith advises artists to follow their individuality in finding their unique style.
“You are only bound by the depth of your own imagination,” she said. “Learn from the past but create your own future. Don’t be boxed in by tradition, color outside the lines and see where it takes you.”
She added, “Never be afraid what lies inside you, illustrate from your heart and it can never be wrong.”
The exhibit of Smith’s pastel inspirations will run through November 6.
Plateau Creative Arts Center, at 451 Lakeview Drive ,is a place where art lives and artists grow.
“Come be part of it: enjoy the exhibit, take a class, or join the Art Guild to support local artists and programs,” Nichols said.
Visit the arts center or call 931-707-7249 for more information.
Plateau Creative Arts Center and the Art Guild at Fairfield Glade are 501c3 nonprofits and equal opportunity providers.
Visit Plateau Creative Arts Center on Facebook and Instagram, or go to plateauarts.org to explore upcoming classes, exhibits, and events.