By Elizabeth Brannon
When the State Fair of Texas announced their creative arts winners for 2024, Kimberly Clingan was thrilled to be named the Creative Arts Winner, Nostalgia Category. “It was a dream come true,” she said.
Kimberly has only been creating art for four years, but in that short time, she has won two 3rd place awards, one Honorable Mention and now the 1st Place award at State Fair. She has also placed 2nd in the North Texas Fair in Denton. The fairs require that artists create as a hobby and not as paid professionals. Kimberly said once she retires, she will paint full time and professionally.
Kimberly is another artist who, quite by accident, discovered her hidden art talent when she was an adult. She remembers having a drawing class in 5th grade and taking an art class in high school. She didn’t do anything else with art until COVID hit. She tried a sip and paint place and found an entire part of her she never knew existed. From there, Kimberly found and followed The Art Sherpa on YouTube. The more she tried art, the more she liked it, and found things she wanted to paint.
She loves vintage and nostalgia, which is reflected in her works. Kimberly is a member of the Copper Canyon Car Club, and she paints old cars and vintage vehicles like Mustangs & Corvettes, old gas pumps and anything related to Americana and Petroliana (a category of collectibles related to gas stations, gas pumps, fuel advertisements and road maps).
Kimberly comes from a family of artists, including her husband, who is a graphic designer and metal worker, her father-in-law, who was a gallery artist, and her youngest daughter, who received an Honorable Mention at the State Fair. Kimberly and her husband often collaborate on art works. She says her favorite medium to work in is acrylic, but she has also created 2-D art in pastels and oils. Kimberly draws well, but it was painting that brought a WOW factor to her art.
Kimberly grew up in North Texas and raised her children here. Initially, she taught English and Special Education. On a hiatus in Florida, she taught in a drop-out prevention program for kids at risk. When she came back to this area, she wanted to “be there” for the students and went into counseling and social and emotional development for students.
Kimberly is now a counselor for the Marcus 9th Grade Campus. It’s a job she loves in a school that appreciates her. Kim tells her co-workers and students to take care of themselves. Now that she has art as her outlet, her dining room is her art studio, where she creates original works, repurposes items, and is dedicated to her art. Her work is all public, she posts on Facebook and hangs her works in her office. She even created a steam punk owl, which won an award. She never had an awareness of her own talent, but now that people have had a chance to see and enjoy her work, she has become a prolific and recognized artist. You can see Kim’s works at texasartsy.com.
If you do go to the 2024 State Fair of Texas, be sure to look for her winning art on display in the Creative Arts Building. And if you’re lucky, you might run into this Marcus 9th Grade Campus Counselor and (now) local artist.
Congratulations, Kimberly Clingan!
Elizabeth Brannon serves on the Flower Mound Cultural Arts Commission.
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