Meet Grace Wilbanks

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

Hi Grace, what inspires you?
I love the wild woman inside of me who dares to express herself. I have a passion for drawing contrast between expectations of women and my expression of femininity. I’m inspired by the chase of chaotic beauty found in nature and within myself.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?

My favorites among my art are an expression of wild femininity. I love combining imagery of literal wilderness with images our society has deemed feminine.

I am proud of myself for saying ‘yes’ to opportunities, even when I didn’t know how in the world I was going to do it. For example, I am very proud of a commissioned outdoor 8 x 8 foot collage, ‘Airstream: Real Travel Adventure,’ at Towerhouse Farm Brewery in Gay, Georgia. I had never done anything larger than canvases I could afford, but I said yes. I didn’t know what adhesive to use on wood panels, or how in the world to weatherproof a paper collage, but I said yes. I overcame challenges by getting creative. At the time of that commission, I didn’t have a studio space, and my living room is barely a foot wider than the collage itself. I did it one panel at a time, and stood on my patio to get perspective. Looking back, getting creative with challenges is when the real fun comes in.

I am very excited to keep getting commissions about everything and anything from college football to music ensembles and sea life. I’m also very excited about sending off applications to exhibitions across Atlanta and the U.S. because I never know when I’ll get a ‘yes.’ Outside of collaging, I’m excited to explore different mediums including acrylic and oil painting in 2025.

I’ve learned to say yes, because the details will work themselves out if I’m creative. I learned to be open to feedback, to take it with grace, and apply it in my work. My favorite piece of advice I apply to my work is the importance of zooming out: making a piece about the feeling of making a piece, or making the first and last piece of a series. Technique wise, some great pieces of advice I’ve picked up from my mentors are: “The viewer completes the art,” “paint with white space,” and “beware of obvious decisions in your work.”

I want the world to know:

My artistic journey is just getting started, but for now, I’d like the world to know that there’s an artist who honors the chaotic beauty in all of us. I would like to express that I’m an artist collaging about the wildness in our hearts and psyches. I see the beauty in the sidewalk, in the birds, in our souls.

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?
Atlanta is a wonderfully fun city. It depends on their definition of a ‘great time,’ but to show them a trip they’ll never forget here are the spots I’d hit: Junkman’s Daughter for some shopping
Muchaco – try the Hawaiian sandwich
Johnny’s Hideaway – no drinks on the dance floor!
Sam Flax Art Store
Amore e Amore
Painted Duck
Silla De Toro for tapas in Marietta Square

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?

The Marietta Art Collective and the artists there have supported me immensely through the development of my art career. In addition, my mentors in both business and art have inspired me throughout this journey. Once I had submitted work to an art exhibition and ended up being rejected. However, I went to the opening anyway, and chatted up the artist who juried the exhibition and ultimately ruled out my work. He’s now one. of my art mentors and has since juried my work in a different show!

Website: gracewilbanksart.com

Instagram: Grace_wilbanks_art