Art for me has always been about expanding the human mind. It has also been a way to project what is in the mind into whatever medium I am working in. In many ways, art is also an escape from the mundane. There is something magical about a work of art. I think it has always been that way since the dawn of cave painting. Human beings have tried to portray and control the world through their arts, as well as communicate with other people. Art also provides a record of what people have done in their lives. Art is mystical.
I learned how to draw in college. This was not through art classes. I took a class in botany. We had to keep a notebook with drawings of plants to help us learn to identify these species. In this class I learned to observe the world for details. It forced me to learn how to project my observations onto paper with the medium of the pencil. I still remember many of the names of the plants I studied, largely because I was forced to draw them out in representational form.
In a class on differential geometry I learned how to draw curved surfaces. The instructor for this class would draw the strangest surfaces on the blackboard in colored chalk, and I would copy these into a notebook with a pencil. I found myself more interested in the graphic representation of abstract functions than in the equations that defined them. Still, the drawings were key in understanding the concepts in the class. I learned three dimensional shading and accurate portrayal of mathematical functions.
After college I went through some hard times. Art was a refuge from the troubles in my life. I would stay up late at night learning to draw portraits. At this time I also began to make sculptures out of wood. I spent many hours carving animals and abstract designs out of beautiful hardwoods. I began to paint pictures on wooden panels or paper. I learned about art largely on my own through practice. I was attempting to find a better place to exist than the harsh reality of life.
Today I mostly paint, though I still do drawings and other media like string art. With this blog, I am creating an online portfolio of my work and sharing my vision with anyone who finds these pages. I have read any number of books on art and the business of selling art, and am attempting to move into the world as a known artist. My ambition is to create value for the world, through the work I produce. I would also like to change the world and make it a better place. If I can find beauty in my work I will be happy. If I can record the thoughts in my head in a visual format, I will be successful. Art has been my hobby over the years, now I am attempting to make a life of it. There is so much in the universe and the human mind, that it is a waste not to use the time we have to create something to amuse and inspire others.
