With every ending there is a new beginning. I had hoped to meet Kimberly Webber Young and learn more about the artists involved with the Gallery at Bear Creek. However, by the time we actually met, it was to gather the last of her paintings as the gallery closed its doors after less than a year of trying to make a go of it in the building up at Melrose Station. It was as if being present at the moment when a baby bird, nudged from the nest, finally takes flight. As she spread out the array of colorful paintings of her own that remained, all the color and brightness of her shy spirit suddenly filled the room.

What do you paint with to get that texture?

I use tar, not the most environmentally friendly, but as a child I always wanted to outline things in black. My high school teacher who was a fine artist told me not to do that and made me feel like I was scum of the art world and that my work didn’t fit. So for 16 years afterwards I didn’t paint anything. I was working in a frame shop in Hendersonville when Mr. Teddy Oliver of Oliver’s Southern Folk Art brought in the work of Michael Banks. I asked him, “Do people really think of this as art?” Because Michael Banks’ work looked more like what I enjoyed doing. I asked Mr. Oliver if I was self taught because I had three semesters of art in high school and only one in college, and he said that sounded like self taught pretty much to him. My old college teacher had turned me off from college art classes because he was always doped up. I looked him up not long ago and he’s been put in jail for methamphetamines. I hope he’s getting the help he needs.

Where did you get the idea to use tar?

I never had the money to paint. I’m on my third marriage and have always put my kids first. When I had Isabella (my youngest child who is a year old) I was watching Paula Dean and thinking, “Lord what am I going to do with my life?” She was talking about having agoraphobia. It made me think about how I would start things and then stop. I don’t know how you feel about this, but it was at that point God told me, “It’s time to paint.” I went through my old acrylics from high school and there was no black. I remembered that Michael used tar and my husband had some in the garage. I painted 27 paintings in three weeks that first time. I ran out of paint so in order to get more I had to sell some paintings. I did send one to Paula Dean though for inspiring me to get past the fear of starting.

What had you been doing before you started painting?

I’ve been a police officer, firefighter, factory worker, after school teacher, worked at Hickory Farms, sold cars, receptionist and built computers for Compaq. I always did what was necessary to pay the bills. Painting helps me to get over obsessing over the death of my parents from a drunk driver when I was eleven and live in the now. It also forces me to go out and talk to people.

Everybody has dirty parts and clean parts. There’s black underneath all the color out in the natural world. When I paint on the tar it looks like how the world looks to me, the light and color covers the darkness. My painting helps me to feel hopeful. That’s what it’s supposed to do anyways.

What elements of your paintings are important to you?

I have painted on some stuff without the tar, using just black paint. The tar’s kind of like the dirt and dust that we all come from and makes it look more alive. Most of the time I paint mason jars, pitchers or a vase. My containers are often bigger than what they contain. The vessel is representative to different people of many things, but for me it’s the body. I grew up canning with the family so the Mason jar was important. Canning was necessary work in order to survive the winter. The Mason jar also symbolized how I see myself because they are clear. Since I truly met Christ a couple of years ago, I don’t feel like I have to hide what has hurt me or that I’m not always strong. It’s like walking a fine line; all the spaces in between the vessel symbolize things going on inside of me or someone I know at that point in time. The flowers are representative of the beauty from within. The spirit horses are some of the power within me and the freedom to be myself. When I was a cop I was very conservative and people kept telling me what I could and couldn’t do or could or couldn’t be. Painting allows me to be myself. When I was little they thought I had autism, and my son they say is autistic, but I think it helps contribute to my intense focus on space in my painting.

Did you grow up in an artistic family?

My mom was an artist and so were my dad and grandfather. But my parents’ death when I was eleven has haunted me. Since I’ve been painting I feel so much freer. I grew up in a family (with my aunt and uncle) that thought if you weren’t a doctor or lawyer or teacher with a college degree you weren’t doing anything. I ended up majoring in motherhood.

So what are your plans now that the gallery is closed?

I’m working on negotiating some studio space at Mona’s cottages in Hendersonville. Nichole Livengood has just agreed to represent me with her new business Art to Profit (www.arttoprofit.com). I just won an artist’s grant from Hendersonville County and Haywood County arts councils. I got enough to paint 160 paintings. I’m lucky because people give me things to paint on too. I use a lot of recycled canvas.

I’ve sold 68 paintings and 10% of all my money goes to Mainstay Shelter in Hendersonville. I wish I didn’t have to worry about the money and that we could all help each other. Most of my sales come from word of mouth, but I’ve shown at Traveler’s Rest Artists Mission and Spartanburg Spring Fling. Now that I don’t have a gallery I’ll be showing at quite a bit more.

Mostly, I paint on my porch (up on Crab Creek Road near Dupont State Forest) with a good view of Pinnacle Mountain. You want to be proud of what you’ve done this day, because you never know how long you have. I moved here in 1997 from Texas with $500 cash and a little u-haul trailer with Ethan and Naomi and let my oldest son live with his dad. When I ran out of money, my second husband left. I haven’t gotten to see Dylan my oldest son in two or three years, so part of painting is being able to see him more often. He’s fixing to turn 16 and I’m missing that, so I’m hoping to sell enough paintings to fly down to see him in Texas once a month.

What did you gain with the gallery here?

Confidence. I met so many people working here and networking. It’s bitter and sweet. I loved promoting the other artists and getting to meet them and sit and talk with them. I had never even been to Saluda before working down here. I also realized that I’m much more content just painting.

Will you still be coming to Polk County now that the Gallery is closed?

I want to enter the Tryon Arts & Crafts juried show. I had thought that Saluda and Tryon were just a couple of little towns. But, I’ve really been impressed with the culture and how many artists there are here and how friendly they are. I haven’t seen them be competitive like they are in other areas. Many places each artist is vying for the most attention, while here I haven’t seen any backstabbing, instead everyone supports each other. I definitely want to stay involved in the area.

For now you can find “Maw Bear” Kimberly Webber Young on the internet at mawbear, but don’t be surprised if you discover her paintings at various galleries and art festivals in the area very soon. It is a beautiful thing to watch as an artist frees their creative spirit and begins to soar.