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Long ago when I was young and had decided to be an artist, Andrew Wyeth was my art hero. He could do no wrong. Any kind of art that did not fall into his category of realism was not worth my time. His influence was so strong that I not only tried to paint like him but searched out Wyeth-like subject matter. Now remember I was young and very impressionable. Frustration eventually pushed me along and away from the strong influence of Wyeth. Then like a prepubescent teenager who falls in love with a different girl every week I found other artists who influenced me. I now call that period the ’Artist of the week’.  Again not a good thing on the surface but a good thing in that I learned so much from studying those other artists. As bad as letting an artist influence you so deeply might be it was a great way to see and try new things. But age and time has long ago changed all that.

True, I still look at other artist’s work. I still study how they do what they do. I read about why they do what they do. I am still learning, still the perpetual art student. And why not? When one stops learning is that not the end? What I have learned though is to not let an artist, no matter how good, to influence me but rather to inspire me.

Inspiration though can come from other sources too, not just other artists and other paintings. Of course for me nature is a great inspiration to create and to paint. To try and capture that very special thing that nature has that is so important to us as humans. To help reconnect to what we have distanced ourselves from in this modern world. Another inspiration for me is music. At the age of fifty-five I decided to learn to play the banjo. The banjo then lead me to the tenor guitar, which then lead me to the best of both worlds, a Gold Tone ‘Dojo’ which is a hybrid, a cross between a resonator guitar and banjo. With these instruments I can play the music I love to listen to and to write my own songs which are at times inspired by my painting and which at times inspire my painting. Now I will admit that though I play these instruments, that I do covers of other artists and write my own songs, I do not claim to do it at all well. But though doing it well is a goal, the reason for doing it is just the enjoyment of doing it. Oh, and that is the real reason for painting as well. Sure I love to sell my work, but ultimately the reason for creating a painting is not the possible sale but for the enjoyment of doing it and sharing it with others.