- Now for a different perspective from the humanities building at the University of Utah, where local artist Pilar Pobil's largest piece of work hangs in the foyer.

This 12-foot painting is nearly three times the artist's size, yet its scale pales in comparison to the artist's reach and impact on Utah's art scene.

(peaceful music) - First I get my canvas.

You put colors in the background, you want to do sky or something.

The one idea that you have first bring you another idea, an idea, and you are never totally sure what the painting is going to be like.

Could be a disaster, you know?

(Pilar laughing) Everything has a story.

I was born from the sea with a paint brush in my hand.

My Spanish name is Pilar Pobil, and that is how I sign my paintings.

So I came to Salt Lake City in 1957.

I consider home this house.

You know, I, most of my life has been here, and my three children have been, were born here, and my husband was born here.

- It's a place where people can come and see and experience art and have fun, and it isn't, there isn't that kind of, that wall between being the viewer and being the artist.

- This is Pilar Pobil's home.

She is an artist that does painting and sculpture.

And what's really special about her house is that she has just like decorated everything.

- [Pilar] When I think something is boring or ugly, I just paint it.

Like my aunt used to say, "Never a dull moment."

- Did you make this one too?

- Yeah.

Everything like this is my work.

The mermaids, I used to paint, to do a lot of mermaids, and these kind of things, the "Pierrot y Colombina."

These were some street players.

- [Liz] That'll be good.

And this is?

- Well, all these are awards and I have many more than that, you know.

- [Liz] But this is the one from the king, right here?

- Yes, this is from the King of Spain.

And this is the highest award that they can give, is the Medalla de la Reina de Isabella Católica.

I am very proud of Spain.

- [Tour Guide] She grew up in Majorca.

She celebrates the Mediterranean, and the ocean, and all of the myths and stories that go with it.

- This is one of my favorite paintings.

(emotional piano music) I call it "The Submerged Cathedral."

Many of my paintings are inspired by things that I think they're not right or they are very, very light.

Somebody painted the knight of the round table, and that's fine with me, but I decided, well, I'm going to paint the dames of the round table.

- [Monica] She gets up every morning and comes downstairs, has her coffee, comes out in the garden, does some work here, goes in and paints.

It's such an example.

She just doesn't give up, ever.

- That's a darker blue.

- No, I want it.

- Here's a lighter one.

- Yeah.

- I think that what I've inherited from my mom is just art.

A lot of people have said that my music and mom's art are sort of symbiotic.

♪ Numbers and surveys I mean, it's kind of outsider art in a way, right?

There's a way in which she's just done what she cares about, what inspires her in the moment, including painting outside of the canvas and into the frames and just a way of seeing that, I think, has been inspiring to people.

♪ Like ink on parchment ♪ Written on me - I always have wanted to do my art the way that it comes out of me.

And so I bought books for me to read, and I learned from that.

This is a painting that I decided to do because there are so many people here, they don't like certain kind of people.

I call this painting "The Colors of Change" because everybody should be appreciated for what they are.

I believe in democracy.

I believe in people are supposed to be treated equally.

I come from Spain.

When we have the Civil War, I was nine years old.

And they killed my father.

Murdered with 40 of his officers when I were nine years old.

I adored him, you know, it was a terrible thing.

We were hiding in an attic and the cook would take me and my younger sister for a walk to give us a little bit of air, you know?

Since then, I have known how much damage people can do, just because of idiot opinions.

When my father was killed and we suffered very much, I was going to emancipate from my mother because she only wanted her daughters to stay home with her, or go to a convent to be nuns.

And I said, "I'm not going to do any of these things."

So this is when I decided to learn to speak English.

To pay for it, I was making greetings cards, and I was painting them and selling them to the shop in a place for tourists, and they wanted more and more and more.

- [Liz] How many paintings do you think you've done over the years?

- No way, no way to know.

I have sold a lot of paintings.

♪ Before I started ♪ I'm a bird that doesn't fly - But I heard you earlier talking about, did art in some ways save her from the tragedy of her early life, and I think so.

♪ Think am I out or am I in - Thank you.

- Uh-huh.

One of the biggest impacts has been Art in the Garden.

It's shared the space with a lot of artists who've had the chance to show to big audiences, but it's also a very democratic event.

- We have done some scholarships in the University of Utah, you know.

- [Tour Guide] Pilar, for years, has invited school children.

- Oh, really?

- Into her home.

She wants them to know that she came from another country, and she was able to create beauty, and they have beauty in their souls as well.

- It has been a challenge, you know, all these house and things, but I have enjoyed life doing that.

You know, I'm very happy.

(nostalgic music) It was going to be called a burial chamber, but then I changed it because what it is is not a burial chamber, it is a celebration of life.

This painting's my son.

He died at the beginning of COVID.

It has my father's sword.

It had photographs of my father.

I had books that my father bought to me that he have, even now, they inspire some of my paintings.

I hope they remember that I have a sense of humor, that I am a good worker, and that I love people who fight for themselves, you know, because all my life I tried to do the best I could.

I feel like I have been a very lucky person, you know, to be able to spend my life like that, and to help so many other artists to do it too.

Wow, so many vibrant colors and characters who warm my hearts simply by sharing their story.

And we want to hear your journey.

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Until next time, I'm Liz Adeola and this is Utah.