It took being laid off for Sherri McIntosh to explore her dream career. Tireless and passionate about teaching, Sherri opened Art Smart on North Mulberry Street in Elizabethtown in 2008.
Sherri lost her job in quality assurance auditing, then returned to school, studying at Western Kentucky University.
She began searching for spaces to lease a business during her final semester at WKU, where she earned degrees in both fine art and arts education.
Sherri began drawing at an early age, which led her to an interest in painting. “I was always painting in my mind,” Sherri said.
Sherri asked her parents year after year for an oil paint set and was continually told that painting wouldn’t lead anywhere. They saw art as a career for “beatniks and dead-enders,” she said.
Sherri created her first painting in her mid-40s. She started with portraits of animals and progressed to more introspective work. One piece displayed in Art Smart is an abstract self-portrait of Sherri in the woods walking toward a light – a realization of her spiritual awakening.
She was inspired to open Art Smart after recognizing her own difficulties in exploring her artistic talents during childhood and later in life. Art Smart is a haven for both budding artists and advanced students. Sherri offers tutoring and sells art supplies.
“You could feel lousy,” said Alma, a longtime friend of Sherri’s who frequently volunteers at Art Smart. “You come here, next thing you know, you forgot how lousy you feel.” Alma asked that her last name not be used.
Sherri guides children and adults through personal artistic exploration which grew from her own experiences with art’s therapeutic, self-revealing and spiritual qualities.
