After Hurricane Michael, artist Paula Rotschafer, spent hours in front of her easel pouring her heart out into watercolor landscapes showing the devastation of Hurricane Michael. The resulting artwork will be showing at the Panama City Center for the Arts from September 27–October 19.

MORE ABOUT THE ARTIST

Processing her feelings through art has been a coping mechanism for all of Paula’s life. Born in the Nebraska panhandle, Paula grew up in extremely rural ranching communities for all her life, but she had strong role models and mentors to inspire her.

Her paternal grandmother was a dedicated oil painter, and her maternal grandmother was an accomplished painter who was a founding member of a small art gallery. Her father minored in art, and her mother was a grade school teacher, so she received a lot of encouragement and guidance as she honed her creative side.

Paula and her husband were relocated to Travis Air Force base in California after the storm, so much to her disappointment, she won’t be here in person to talk to people and hear stories from survivors. Instead, the Center for the Arts will have a guest book in the gallery where visitors can leave Paula a message.

“I was an awkward, eccentric, imaginative child who didn’t excel in sports, so art was always just my ‘thing,” she said. One of her aunts’ gave Paula a sketchbook and few lessons on perspective and proportion, and she’s been drawing ever since.

“As a child, I frequently made silly drawings and cartoons that made people laugh, and I absolutely adored being able to create something that could have any sort of emotional impact on another person.”

She majored in Professional Art at Doane College and later received a Masters’ in Art History in Lincoln Nebraska. Now, as a military spouse, she is grateful to have her creative skills to fall back on as it is often hard to secure steady, full-time work.