
This week, we sit down with Charleston-based painter Julia Deckman (@juliadeckmanstudio) — 2019 Lowcountry Artist of the Year, color-obsessed maker, and community-builder whose path has taken her from anthropology to art studios, retail experiments, and back into the heart of painting.
We get into:
🎨 Growing up with paint + rediscovering art as an adult
📚 From anthropology to Indiana Jones obsessions to creative practice
🐾 A lifelong love of animals, rescue work, and raccoon dreams
🌀 Processing divorce, burnout, and depression through art
🎭 Impostor syndrome + what art school doesn’t teach you
🌈 Why color is her true medium (and how she “feels” hues)
🏛 Lessons learned from running a retail space + working with galleries
🤝 Community, collaboration, and building sustainability as an artist in Charleston
Whether you’re deep in your studio practice, wrestling with self-doubt, or just love hearing real talk about art + survival — this one’s full of color and clarity.
📍 Recorded at Studio 5 inside Redux Contemporary Art Center, Charleston SC
🎧 Listen wherever you get your podcasts
💌 Join the club → susart.club
📲 Instagram → @susartclub
👇 Follow Julia:
Instagram → @juliadeckmanstudio
Website → juliadeckmanstudio.com