About Ballard’s Fine Art Gallery

Hi, my name is Kim Lassiter.  I am so very thankful that I have the opportunity to start up this Fine Art Gallery with my two children, Nalin and Cutter. I feel like it has been a long time coming, and all of my thoughts and passions for art are now wrapped up into one idea, Ballard’s Fine Art Gallery. From the time I was five or so years old, I can remember wanting to create artwork. I would go into the living room and turn the TV on to a black and white fuzzy screen so I could use it as a drawing surface. The TV at the time had a lot of static electricity, which would help me attach my paper to the screen without any tape and then I could trace whatever I wanted easily.
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It was easy for me to sketch, but I enjoyed tracing because it quickly gave me the right proportions and then it was easy to do the rest. My next relevant memory of art would be sitting at the dinner table with my dad sketching. We were both sketching, and he was telling me that I need to go into something else besides art. He told me I won’t be able to make a living at it. That visual and concept is stuck in my head.

I went into the teaching field, because I did not feel like I could make a living off of my own art, but I knew I was good at delivering a concept in many ways. I am able to understand and allow kids to be creative in a comfortable environment. I truly wanted, while I was teaching, to understand what each student was capable of and simply guide them in their own vision.

After my mom passed away in 2018, it allowed me to retire from teaching early and focus on my kids for a bit. During that time I realized my kids were proud of me while I was teaching and I felt like I was sort of letting them down by not doing something related to art anymore. I became very passionate about collecting original artworks by other artists while I was in "retirement". My love for what other artists can do with their creativity has become so exciting and I want to share it with others. In fact, I realized I enjoyed it so much that I started to match up artworks with my friends personalities. I felt like I could pick out what they would love in their home.

I then decided that I could make my kids proud and continue to collect art works as well as share it with others if I opened up an art gallery. And so it developed, Ballard’s Fine Art Gallery was born, October 19, 2022.
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I chose the name Ballard‘s after my great grandfather Charles Edward Ballard. I feel like it’s a good tribute to him for all of his hard work and the fact that I was allowed to financially “retire” early and start the gallery.  I put the word retire in quotes, because running a fine art gallery is a lot of work! I am, however, excited and I know my kids are proud of what we are doing. I’m so glad they’re excited, and I’m thankful they want to join me on this adventure.  

One of the best parts of the gallery is opening the boxes that contain original artworks. It’s so hard to express the joy I feel when I open a box by these artists. That feeling you get, it’s amazing and unexplainable.  I simply sit in awe by the shear talent of these artists and imagination/creativity of each of them.  When the artwork goes into the space of its future home, it literally transforms the room.  It truly is amazing!  I can not wait to share all of this with you and I hope their work brings you just as much joy or more.

Please feel free to reach out to me by mail, phone, text.  I want you to see what these artists are capable of and help you get their amazing artwork into your home or office.

I never knew my great-grandfather, this is his story and it is worth the read! If you would like to learn more about him, visit Ed Ballard's History page

Thanks for being here!
-Kim Lassiter
Ballard's Fine Art Gallery