Meet Kate Gouws | Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kate Gouws and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kate, what’s one piece of conventional advice that you disagree with?
One big piece of advice we used to receive when working on our higher education degree for fine arts was to hold true to your style and not compromise for the buying market. While I agree that it is important to generate and maintain your artistic style, as I have grown my business over the years, I have noticed the need for adaptation and in a way compromise. As any businessman or woman would fully understand, the need for working with the changes in the market is crucial to your success. As an artist, this is not far from the truth either. The consumer market is your bread and butter. We, as artists, sadly are not siloed outside of a world of money. Allowing their creativity and artist expression to work in tandem with their clientele gives artists the ability to sustain and grow their business. Success brings freedom and options. It gives artists freedom to create what they are passionate about while also paying their bills. While I am a firm believer in staying true to your artistic ‘hand’, allowing for adjustments in your work can be very rewarding.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am a watercolor artist and textile designer. I dabble in mix media art and pretty much love to paint on anything I have lying around. In the recent years, I’ve seen my artwork transformed in fabric designs for children’s clothing, purses, trunks, and so much more. My style is whimsical, feminine and youthful. I love to be inspired by childhood memories, traditional designs and the idyllic life we dream of. My color palette tends toward cool pastels, blushing pinks and touches of colors. I offer my clients custom portraiture, curated Christmas cards and delicately watercolor wedding stationery, among other products. I studied fine arts in college and graduated with a BFA with a concentration in oil painting. My style and work has changed drastically since graduating, but I am thankful for each season and find great purpose in the evolution of my artwork. I lived overseas for several years and found many hurdles in supplying my artwork to my customers. This season propelled me to start smaller work and developed my love for watercolor. The delicate details and the tender strokes gave me a fresh love for painting. While watercolor is my focus, I often use acrylics for my mixed media projects. I have enjoyed the journey of marketing, promoting and growing my business, while it can be vulnerable, it is so rewarding to see success in something you’ve put your heart into.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Before living in Dallas, I lived in Cape Town, South Africa for seven years. I dream of having my besties visit my husband and I in Cape Town while we were there. On a day in the city, I would take my friends on an early morning swim in the ocean at one of many Cape Town’s beaches and maybe even catch a surf if the waves are looking nice. We would bundle up and head to coffee for a pick-me-up and something sweat to eat. After a breakfast filled with fresh ocean air and watching the sunrise over the mountains, we’d go for a hike up Lions Head mountain to catch a view of the whole city as far as the eye can see. Lunch would be at the farmers market at one of the many local vendors with fresh baked bread and cuisine from around the world. Before leaving the market, we would stop at my favorite florists stall that sources locally grown flowers more beautiful than you’ve ever seen. We would catch a vineyard in the early afternoon for a wine and chocolate pairing and walk through the vineyards talking and sharing memories of our long history together. The evening would be filled with a beautiful evening sunset overlooking the vineyards at one of my favorite farms in the area, Babylonstoren. The rest of the week would be filled with hikes, gondola ride, vineyard segway tours, and outdoor activities. We’d dine outside as much as possible to catch a view of the beauty around us in every direction. We’d run into people from around the world, speaking languages we couldn’t understand. We would laugh way too hard, enjoy time together too much and never want it to end.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My shoutout belongs to my cheerleaders, the ones who bought my first pieces, attended every art show, auction and trunk show. To the ones I have felt believed in all along by, my mother and sister. They have both created space for me to see myself as an artist and sometimes believed in me far more than I believed in myself. My mom is always the first to purchase something from me and in the early days, the only one. On days I feel I have no inspiration and my art is no longer worth pursuing, she reminds me of why I do it, how much success I’ve seen and what else is still out there for me to accomplish! I remember one day several years ago when my sister sat me down and got straight with me. She isn’t a tough talker normally but had a firm attitude with me this day. She told me in great love, “You really need to do this [start a creative business], Kate. You are so talented. You just need to kick into gear and do it! Come on!” It was the best advice and support I could have asked for and some I didn’t even know I needed: someone who is there telling me I’ve got it before I ever did.

Website: www.madebykateg.com

Instagram: Madebykateg

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/madebykateg/

Image Credits
Credit to photographers Whitney Green and Sean Gibson