62 www.CharlestonWomenPodcast.com | www.ReadCW.com | www.Instagram.com /CharlestonWomen From successful painter to custom wallpaper designer to muralist, Heidi Oates’ career has truly blossomed, making her an artist to watch for in 2024. The Summerville native’s work is in high demand, and she owes it all to talent, dedication, passion and a fortuitous cold that helped launch her career in a new direction. Oates has been painting her entire life, and what started as a hobby has transformed into a thriving business. She had been selling art for over 10 years from her home studio when an unexpected cold last fall propelled Oates to her new career as a wallpaper designer and muralist. While stuck at home and feeling “antsy,” Oates recalled seeing a painted wallpaper design at a local eatery and decided to try her hand at a similar project in her own bathroom. The time-lapse video of that art project hit Instagram and went viral. Recalled Oates, “I remember thinking, ‘I can do that,’ so I went in my bathroom and painted something, posted the video on social media and people freaked out. It really blew up from that one video. It was so random. I never intended to have this become a branch for my art business.” Oates now works with individual clients and interior designers to create custom home and business wall art projects. She works closely with each client to gain an understanding of their design goals, select color palettes, create mocks ups and provide pricing and timelines. She’s currently booking two to three months in advance for wall art requests and six to eight weeks for commissioned paintings. Thanks to a referral from a wallpaper client, Oates recently added “professional muralist” to her list of titles. A client and local PTA member recommended Oates to Art and Serendipity Heidi Oates dishes on colds, colors and custom crafts BY SHERRY WHITING Charleston Women in the Arts
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