You never know what you’re going to get when you sit down with someone for the first time. I mentioned to my friend, Jack Wallace, that we had received an inquiry from the Pink Pelican Art Gallery owner about an event they are having in late May. He said, “That’s a great art gallery. We love going there, and they are great people.” I decided that I would like to meet Tamara Scott, the artist who owns the Pink Pelican Art Gallery in Orange Beach.

Tamara and her husband, Tony, now live in Fairhope, but haven't always.  She grew up south of Detroit, Michigan, and has always been a painter. “Even as a child, I was on the kitchen floor, finger painting on poster board,” she tells me.

Her parents encouraged her artistic endeavors, but her dad advised her to get a degree in something that would help her make a living. “A real job” is how he described it to Tamara. She worked a “real job” as a nurse for many years, but never gave up her artistic pursuits. On the side, Tamara painted commissioned pieces for friends, family, and friends of friends. Her real job eventually took her to Indianapolis, Indiana, where she met her husband, Tony.

Tony Scott grew up in Mobile and has worked in the disaster insurance adjustment business for many years, first with Pilot Catastrophe Services, then Southeast Disaster Recovery Services, before joining Davies Group. He is now VP of Operations for Frontier Adjusters. 

“Moving from Indianapolis to Alabama was easy. I didn’t want to do any more Northern winters, so we moved to Tony’s home base. Many of the people Tony knew or went to school with lived on the Eastern Shore, which was perfect because I wanted to live in Fairhope. It was difficult to enter the art scene at first. I was told I had a Northern color palette and needed a Fairhope color palette. I made a few adjustments.” 

Before settling in Fairhope, Tony and Tamara lived on the water in a 72’ Hatteras Motor Yacht at The Wharf in Orange Beach. She painted on the back deck, the dock, and occasionally a friend’s barn for big work. As her artwork evolved, her concentration as of late is her clay florals. “Hand-built clay flowers on canvas are popular, but I still love painting sailboats, beach themes, and very coastal works.” 

Pink Pelican Art Gallery currently represents 48 talented, local, and regional artists with a variety of mediums, including watercolor, oils, sculpture, and jewelry. “We are a fine art gallery, with a great variety of work, and no artist is doing the same thing. We are unique, whimsical, with new artwork and artists coming in monthly. We host a monthly event to advertise the artists and the gallery.”

Wine Down Wednesday is usually the last Wednesday of each month. “It’s our version of an Art Walk, but we are more of a destination. We cater to the local community, and have make-and-take or “live” paintings at the events. We offer beer, wine, and bubbles to sip, have occasional pop-ups, and just have a good time!”

Tamara tells me she didn’t know many people after moving to Fairhope, so she often went out to lunch by herself. “I couldn’t help but overhear conversations taking place around me. I decided to write a romance novel on things I heard, and changed the names to protect the innocent. They became pretty popular, and I’ve had a few fun book signings at Page & Palette. People are always asking who the characters are based on, but I’ll never tell!” 

Her pen name is Ansley Prescott in case her mother reads one of her novels… “They are good beach reads with a good amount of spice,” she says. She has seven published books, five in the Forever Fairhope romance series. She has also written for Splash magazine, a high-end publication based in Perdido Key. After moving to Alabama, Tamara sold her first paintings to the Grand Hotel. 

Check out Pink Pelican Art Gallery at 24823 Canal Road in Orange Beach and make plans to attend Wine Down Wednesday on May 28 from 5 pm - 8 pm. Sounds like a good time. Be sure to meet Tamara. You’ll be glad you did!