When Paris Woodhull was six years old, she made it known that she wanted to be an artist. As soon as she won a ribbon in the county fair for her drawing of every U.S. president, the deal was sealed.
“I wish I could say that I wanted to be an astronaut, but you couldn’t stop me from drawing,” says Paris, laughing. “When I was eight years old, my cousin was graduating from NYU, and we went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. My mom and grandmother always laughed at me about that—overcome by the art. My eight-year-old self was like I need pen and paper right now! I was so inspired.”
Born and raised in Mechanicsville, Paris is a tried-and-true Knoxville native, so it’s only fitting that she decorates the city with her large-scale murals, creates one-of-a-kind tokens for visitors, and runs a brick-and-mortar shop in the historic Old City—Paris Woodhull Illustrations—for locals and tourists to peruse.
“My parents instilled in me that you must have a good work ethic and good communication skills, and I’ve developed some of that on my own. It’s possible to be a working artist, but you have to be extremely willing to make mistakes publicly and evolve constantly. Occasionally I’ll get a comment that I get to sit around and paint all day,” she says, laughing. “That must be great!”
Paris earned a full scholarship to the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, which offered her access to myriad mediums to experiment with and, in turn, cross certain methods of expression off her list. She was a painting and drawing major with the intention of working in fashion. She interned at Marc Nelson Denim, and while the opportunity was exceptional, Paris realized she preferred to draw fashion rather than create it.
In 2015, Paris started her own business as an artist and illustrator, selling her pieces at Rala and working alongside the store’s owner, Nanci Solomon. Under Nanci’s mentorship, Paris learned how to price her work, market it, and connect with people who meandered in the shop. Eventually, Paris was promoted to manager of the shop, and, in turn, helped other young artists price and sell their work.
Then, in 2020, as more people were shopping online from home, Paris saw her sales triple.
“It was wild,” she recalls. “I was able to bow out of Rala and let other people who needed the hours take those hours, but I still sold my stuff there. Then, a little over two years ago, I opened my own storefront. I happened upon the space and mentioned it to my husband, Ryan, and he was like, ‘What if you opened a store?’ and I was like, ‘Nope! That’s terrifying!’ But I kept thinking about it and questioning why I wasn’t taking the leap. I decided to muscle up and do it. It's been brutal, and it’s broken me in a lot of ways, but it’s also rebuilt me in a lot of ways.”
Paris’s creative work is like a fingerprint, uniquely hers and recognizable, particularly since you can find her prints, totes, keychains, t-shirts, and other illustrated tidbits in other stores in the region. She’s also known for her illustrated maps of Knoxville and its surrounding communities, some of which were custom jobs that morphed into bigger projects.
Of course, running a successful business isn’t at all like being an artist, but the learning curve has been padded with good advice, trial and error, and learning new ways of doing things when the old ways don’t work anymore. Working alongside her small staff of part-timers is a role she takes seriously, but Ryan’s professional background has provided some guidance.
“It helps to have someone in your corner. He’s taught me so much about managing people. There was a time when I hated looking at my own numbers, but it’s helped me to make decisions on facts rather than emotions.
“My business isn’t a hobby,” she continues. “That’s my biggest nightmare–that this is just a hobby. It’s my livelihood. I was always that person in the group project who took over and did it by myself. Learning to have the mentality to ask for help, to spend time training someone, and it just took a few times getting broken to learn that.”
Creatively, though, Paris is enjoying the journey. She keeps a running list of ideas on her Notes app, pays attention to trends, and continually improves her artwork through ProCreate and Adobe Fresco on her iPad. She’s looking forward to more mural projects and accepting custom projects that feel right. It’s been ten years since she took a chance on herself, and there’s no end to that endeavor in sight.
“I’m just so grateful for Knoxville. I wouldn’t have been this far if it weren’t for people taking chances on me when I was younger,” says Paris. “If you have an opportunity to give people a shot and help them develop their artistic career, do it. I wouldn’t be here without people saying, She can do it.”
Learn more at ParisWoodhull.com
“I wouldn’t have been this far if it weren’t for people taking chances on me when I was younger. If you have an opportunity to give people a shot and help them develop their artistic career, do it. I wouldn’t be here without people saying, She can do it.”