Pam McDonnell graduated from the University of Memphis where she holds a BFA. At U of M, McDonnell won several design awards and graduated magna cum laude.

Journey

To journey without being changed
Is to be a nomad
To change without journeying
Is to be a chameleon
To journey and be transformed by the journey
Is to be a pilgrim unknown author

Our journeys are unique and we leave a trail through the spaces we have traveled. My own personal journey has taught me to step back and see a bigger picture. In doing this, I have come to know a central source lying patient and still as life quickly revolves around it. This source offers peace, understanding and meaning to all the confusion present in life. We can choose to be a part of it and experience peace or ignore it and remain trapped and ineffectual to ourselves and others.

Hindsight has allowed me to see that our pathways are twisted, knotted and very rarely straight. Our destination will always change as we mix with others and gain new perspectives. My paintings are studies into how these encounters can redirect flow, cause tangles, leave wreckage or at best make more meaningful the trail that we leave behind.

These works have pushed me to question my responsibility for honesty and how my actions affect the paths of other people. My response to this questioning has led me to understand that we all learn by making sometimes harmful mistakes against ourselves and against each other. But in the end if we choose to be Pilgrims instead of Nomads, we can find repair, love and direction back to our patient, loving source.