Inspiring Conversations with Amanda Clark of A. Specht Painting

Today we’d like to introduce you to Amanda Clark

Hi Amanda , can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I graduated with an Fine Arts degree with a focus in Abstract Painting in 2003 from Mount Vernon Nazarene University. I then moved to Chicago and was an Art Director/Teacher with INTRSCT, an after school program for inner city youth. Met my husband, got married in 2008, had 2 kids in Juliana in 2010 and Andru in 2013. Moved back to Canton, was a stay at home mom always looking for the next “project”. I was always painting something, my own walls, canvas, friends walls. I was trying to come up with a form of income using my artistic talents while still being a stay at home mom, since my kids were still young.
Then I was asked to paint a few murals, Bulldogs, for Canton City Schools. While I was in one of the schools painting a teacher came up to me and asked if I could paint her bedroom walls. I figured sure, I’ve painted my own many times. That’s how A. Specht Painting began.
The name A. Specht is my maiden name, and the name that I have signed all of my paintings since I started in college. My family has owned and operated our farm Specht Dairy for 100 years this year. I grew up with a strong work ethic because of my family farm and I am very proud of my family name, so that’s why I wanted to use it for my business.
After that initial painting job in 2015 my business has flourished by word of mouth. I have painted numerous murals and countless residential interior homes through the past years. I am the owner, director and sole employee of my own business and I love every minute of it. I have an extreme attention to detail and am a bit of a perfectionist within my work and that is what brings my clients back year after year and the reason why I stay busy just by word of mouth.
I love being able to change the feel of a room or of a building just by applying color or design. I love to make people smile thru art.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
When I initially started it was tough to fit in my work schedule around my kids needs and my husbands schedule. There was a learning curve to setting everything up, but that was also the beauty of being my own boss.
At the beginning there was also the struggle of figuring out and setting up pricing. I did a lot of research and reached out to other painters in my area to set up a fair pricing system. Now I feel like I have set prices that make my estimate process easier.
I am also a very efficient person within my work. So, I feel that now my painting process whether it be painting walls or murals I have a system in place to tackle the project in an efficient manner while producing a high quality product for my clients.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
I am an artist that just happens to paint interior houses. I started my own painting business in 2015 and it has flourished into a successful full time job.
I paint Interior and Exterior Murals as well as Residential Interior homes. I have many return clients and stay busy throughout the year by word of mouth, which is a testament to my quality of work. I have had my sister in law Val who is also a painter and my mom who is an artist assist me in large jobs before, otherwise it is just me. I have high standards for myself and my work, so that is why I choose to not hire on employees. I enjoy the work and my clients appreciate the time I take and the attention to detail I give them within my work. I take on every job as if I was painting at my own home. I love that my client leaves for work with one room and returns to a completely different vibe within their space just by the use of paint.
I love the mix of painting murals and just plain walls. When I’m painting murals I get to bring in more of my Art background. To me murals can enliven a building/wall to draw people in. I love to create pieces that the viewer can interpret in their own way, bring their own ideas and form a story about the piece from the colors and composition that they see. I also love to make people smile and laugh, so a lot of times there could be something funny hidden within the piece that the viewer needs to seek out.
I take pride in the quality of work that I produce. I have high standards for my work within my own home, so why not for my clients homes as well.
I am known for my line work within homes and my murals. A lot of times I have people tell me they think my mural paintings are vinyl applications. I am known for the hashtag #thoselinestho
I am proud to be a strong woman that started her own business from nothing to a successful business and a career that keeps me busy year after year. I won the Canton Community Votes for 2023 and was nominated again this year. It feels great to be seen and appreciated by your community. It makes me want to work even harder for those around me.

So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
Treating peoples spaces as my own. I care deeply for others and just want to help them create a space that they love through the use of paint.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: aspechtpainting
• Facebook: A.SpechtPainting
• Other: a.specht_painting on tiktok