It is, as I imagine, traditional for the “About” section of an artist’s web site to include their background of education, accomplishments and philosophies with art. I can provide a slight-of-hand with the first two and offer a deeper dive into the last, focusing on what ignites my creative process. An initial education began as a small child through the world of television. Cartoons and children’s programs directed me towards the desire to recreate the world on paper. My first lesson occurred while lying on the floor hands on chin and eyes glued to a children’s show as they explained how to draw a monkey’s head after sketching the outline of a peanut. By age 8 I had my premier commission with the sketch of a horse covering a hole in the bathroom door.
Throughout childhood I continued to doodle, receiving rotating exhibits on the family refrigerator door interspersed between Christmas photo cards and shopping lists. Life as a young man limited my graphics work to an occasional middle or high school project while filling the margins of every classroom notebook with artwork. Through the encouragement of family and friends I received a Bachelor’s of Arts degree from a small liberal arts college in hopes of becoming a graphics artist. Employment took a different turn and art became a vocation. Over time I have been blessed by many, some calling themselves artists and those who are and refuse to admit so (I have been the latter). My collection of art has leaked out to the public in small installations including coffee shops, restaurants, community art shows and juried gallery spaces.
Art has afforded me additional gifts other than the active act of creating. These gifts include:
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an awareness that “the eraser is as important as the pointed end of a pencil” (helping me to soften the self-judgment when making a mistake)
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that sometimes the unintended outcomes (quote mistake unquote) are better than what was planned
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in relaxing with the details or as one teacher once told me “they will never see it from Main Street” (this bigger picture view has helped me take a step back when slogging through details of projects)
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that looking and seeing are not the same (when I look at something I just glance without appreciating or understand what is in front of me, when I attempt to recreate that same something I more actively examine or see what is in front and inside of me)
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in the humility of knowing that others play a role in my creation whether it be the person who stretched the canvas I purchased or another artist who inspired my decision to create in a certain way or an unseen guide that quietly whispers in my ear to “create”.
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