Sandra Pratt
Colorado
Born: La Grange, IL, 1978.
First art sale: “I remember eating pancakes at a diner in Chicago and realizing I didn’t have enough money to pay the bill. I tried to sell my sketches to the waitstaff and other customers, but it didn’t really work.”
Art education: Self-taught. “I like the freedom to try anything.”
Style of work: Abstract representational. “My paintings are really thick—I use a 7-inch palette knife and just go at it.”
Favorite subject to paint: “I love the different hues and variance of the sky. It would take forever to get them all.”
Favorite artists: Whistler, Diebenkorn, Annabelle Galt. Creative spark: “I can’t paint every day. I’ll go weeks without painting, and then it’ll just make sense to paint again.”
Second-choice career: Ballet dancer.
Other passions: “Playing chess, reading, and playing with my dogs.“
Fantasy art trip: Backpacking across Europe. Favorite studio music: Tom Waits, Beck, Bach, Nina Simone.
Best advice received: “To take responsibility for my life. You’re responsible for everything you do.”
Pet peeve: “Getting paint on my CDs.”
Next big goal: To buy a house on a lot of acres in the mountains.
Price range: $900 to $6,500. Galleries: Merrill-Johnson Gallery, Denver, CO; Innovations Gallery, Fort Collins, CO; Deloney Newkirk Fine Art, Santa Fe, NM.
Featured in “21 Under 31” September 2002