A RT I S T: SA M T H E P LU M B E R
By Ginny Brennan
The Mentor’s Story
Allan Kollar Gallery –
Turn-of-the-Century American Art
“My teaching experience in 1974-
75 was wonderful and in overdrive.
I taught five classes a day including
drawing, painting, design, printmak-
ing, and every Thursday showed an
art history slide presentation for
the last 15 minutes of class. Not
wasting a moment, I was the varsity
basketball coach, and was attending
graduate school at UW, completing
my MFA in 1976. I was also an active
artist in Seattle though the 1970s.
“Paint and Overalls” started fifty-plus years ago at the age of eight. The focus on art
came to light when Sam White, a resident of Woodenville, WA attended Bothell High
School in 1974.
Originally painting with watercolors, Sam experimented with oils, but didn’t care for
the extended drying time or using palette knives. Sam’s current style, utilizing acrylics,
evolved over forty-three years. Many historic artists including Matisse and Van Gogh
have been strong influences on Sam’s art, but Sam gravitates back to Picasso as a
favorite.
Sam is fascinated by people; “People inspire me.” He tends to be a people watcher
and especially enjoys seeking out those that are showing happiness—going for the
gusto of life and finding funky hairdos, earrings, eyebrows, body piercings and all the
things they do to themselves.
Finding Youthful Art In Seattle Housing Projects
Although Sam’s early childhood was tough, he did have great influences. One was a
special neighbor who let Sam draw and paint. He mowed her lawn with a push lawn
mower, and she shared her love of crafts with Sam, teaching him her art. During this
time Sam also saw other children copying comics from newspapers and he began do-
ing so himself. Eventually he developed his drawing skills without tracing.
A wonderful happenstance was Sam’s tutelage with Allan Kollar, who during the
1970’s, was an Art Teacher at Bothell High School. Sam speaks very highly and shows
much admiration for the time he spent with Allan Kollar during his formative years,
with Allan supporting and encouraging him to soar with his artist strengths.
During those early teaching days, I
had the same youthful energy the
students had back then. Of my two
major careers, teaching has left me
with the most positive memories.
Educating others is not about money,
it is about sharing with others that
which has brought one so much
pleasure.
Sam White was a person who had to
create. He took several of my classes
and never wasted a classroom mo-
ment. He immediately went to work
putting brush to canvas and moving
paint in expressive ways. The studio
classroom was where he was happily
engaged—a home away from home.
If the assignment was to paint one
canvas exploring shadows and
value contrast in a compositional
arrangement, Sam handed in three.
He worked fast and had a sense of
visual balance within a picture plane.
It warms my heart to