Lowcountry Originals 2022 - Saundra Renee Smith
How did you discover your artistic ability?
I began my journey as a Gullah/Geechee self-taught outsider folk artist following a traumatic period in my life—the deaths of four close family members six months apart over two years. After burying my mother on Christmas Eve of 2007, I found myself in a very dark place, but learned from that womb of darkness and through great pain that great joy can be born. The artist inside of me drew her first breath when I merged canvas with paint for the first time. My art helped me paint my way out of the darkness, as I taught myself to paint away the pain.
What makes you a Lowcountry Original?
I was born in the house I was raised in on St. Helena Island. I was delivered by one of the last remaining mid-wives on the island—Miss Missy. Conceived and delivered in the Gullah/Geechee culture as a descendant of the Guale Native Americans and African slaves. I guess you can’t get more original than that.