New artist joins the Bryan scene
With no professional training or schooling, Barbara German left behind her 15-year career as a teacher to pursue her dream of becoming an artist.
German is beginning to see some reward for that risk, and on Friday evening she will be featured in a "meet the artist" showcase of her paintings at the Village Cafe and Art979 Gallery in Downtown Bryan.
With the full support of husband Rick German, head basketball coach at A&M Consolidated High School, German's spent the last year working to make a name for herself.
German said she has a "box theory" of life: Most people are in the middle of a box, with lots of comfortable space around them.
"I think my mistake was being in the middle of the box," she said. "I needed to be on the side pushing it, pushing it bigger. Even breaking it and stepping through. Once you step through that open edge of the box you can't go back to the middle because it's not a full box anymore."
German said one of her early goals was to become a flight attendant. After realizing that ambition, it was time to move on.
"It was something I thought was unreachable for me," she said. "I thought if I could do that I could do another dream."
With the encouragement of her sister, who owns Under One Room, a studio in Wimberly, German began selling her pieces.
"And then people paid real money for it," said German, who graduated from West Texas A&M University with a degree in education.
German and her husband moved to the area last year from Houston.
"I told myself I'd give it a year. If I don't see open doors, I'll go back to teaching," she said.
During this past year, German said, one door after another has opened for her. She said she's already connected to other artists in the area and to arts organizations, and she has been scheduled in the coming months to speak to students and present her work.
"I've never been in a community before that's so welcoming and accepting of somebody with a new dream," she said.
Kristy Petty, owner of The Village Café and Art979, got to know German after noticing she was visiting the café on a regular basis.
German "timidly" mentioned she was an artist, Petty said, and she encouraged her to get involved in the art community.
Petty, who says she's showcased close to 100 local artists at her venue in the three years it's been open, believes repeated exposure such as that offered by her gallery helps local artists ground themselves in the area.
"We should support them to encourage them to stay here and not to move away to the larger cities," she said.
MEET THE ARTIST
* Barbara German
* 8 p.m. Friday at The Village Cafe and Art979 Gallery, 210 West 26th St. in Bryan
* Website: barbaragerman.com
* Blog: barbaragerman.blogspot.com
* Online shop: barbaragerman.etsy.com
* Facebook: facebook.com/barbaragerman
