See? You can make money with art

GREENSBORO — Katie Podracky was destined to be a doctor because you can’t make a living as an artist. But when she realized she didn’t have a stomach for medicine, she fell back on her first love.

She’s now turned that love into a viable profession.

Podracky and her family live in Greensboro but she grew up in Asheboro, where art came into her life at a young age.

She said when she was 4 or 5 years old she began going to summer arts camps sponsored by the Randolph Arts Guild. “I saw art by locals,” she said. “I have a lot of early memories.”

She credits art teachers in the Asheboro City Schools for encouraging her art. Brenda Powers at McCrary Elementary School “told my mother I had a lot of talent.” That led to her taking private lessons with Paula Smith on Wednesday afternoons.

“She took me on Old Cox Road to see a red barn,” Podracky recalled. “I would make art for her and it was my favorite part of the week.”

At North Asheboro Middle School, her art teacher was Vicki Essick, who taught a lesson in pointillism, a technique in which small, distinct dots of color are applied in patterns to form an image. Podracky said you see “dots up close, but when you move away, the colors blend together. It was magic.”

Gail King was her art teacher at Asheboro High School. “The art room felt like a refuge, being a teenager,” said Podracky of learning art history and oil painting. She said it was a time to “discover art materials and have fun.”

Then it was on to Washington and Lee University, where Podracky majored in biology but also studied art. But when it came time to plan for graduate school, it became evident that she couldn’t stomach hospitals. Even physical therapy was a turnoff for her.

So, rather than enrolling in a medical school, Podracky was accepted at Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, Georgia. That’s where she met her future husband, David Podracky, who is now an aeronautical engineer. 

They married and moved to Greensboro in 2008, where David is an engineer at Honda Jet. Katie began teaching art at Randleman Elementary and then in Guilford County Schools.

During those early days in the Gate City, Podracky said she “marveled at GreenHill Gallery shows.” She thought it would be great if she could display her paintings there.

After a few years, the Podrackys had Miles, now 9, and then Georgia, who is 7. Katie decided to stay home with the kids and paint.

Then in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic shut everything down and the Podrackys began home schooling.

“To save our sanity, we fell into a pattern of visiting state parks,” Katie said. “We went to all 41 that year. It was the only thing open.”

A friend of Katie’s suggested that she paint pictures of scenes in the parks. After she started doing that, the friend helped her create a calendar based on her park paintings. They sold more than 100 and then sent one to Our State Magazine, which said they couldn’t use them since they were dated.

However, about six months later, an Our State writer contacted Podracky with the idea of doing an article on her state park paintings. The story came out as a nine-page spread in the fall of 2022. The result was that “a lot of people joined my email list.”

Podracky calls her painting style contemporary impressionism. “I love color and light, to capture a fleeting moment,” she said.

“Now, making art is the way I cope with life,” Podracky said. “And I’m able to make a living with my paintings. Life has been good since 2020.”

With the combined incomes of Katie and David, the Podrackys are able to travel in the summer months. For her 40th birthday, they vacationed at Big Sur, California, where she found multiple vistas to paint.

In an email, Podracky said, “Here is my blog post about The Cadence Collection (which is my Big Sur collection of paintings).  https://www.katiewallart.com/blog/california.

“I also wrote a bit about our California trip for anyone looking for travel tips in the Big Sur area:  https://www.katiewallart.com/blog/travel-like-an-artist-big-sur-ca.”

Podracky’s works have been displayed at the Luck’s Artwalk in Seagrove and one is hanging in the main conference room of the Cone MedCenter Asheboro on Spero Road. 

And now, Podracky’s dream of having her art at the GreenHill Gallery in the Greensboro Cultural Center on Davie Street is a reality. The Winter Show lasts until Feb. 15.

“I’m really happy,” Podracky said. “I take care of my children and make money with art.”