I was born in Alto, Texas, on a farm near the Angelena River in Cherokee County in 1920. Growing up
there and helping with the farm work, I became fascinated with nature and came to love it. Each little provision for the propagation of life and the magic of it all made the beauty of nature part of my life and pleasure. After graduating from high school, I was strongly attracted to the fields of electronics and electricity as a vocation since they are products of nature. This interest led me on a trip to Chicago where I began to enjoy the variations in scenery across the land. My desire to paint was thus stirred.
I had started to paint with wax crayons and watercolors in the third grade but never thought about oils and acrylics. My first oils were given to me as a birthday gift by my wife when I was about 24; I quickly started practicing with them. Then W.W.II came and I was off to Europe where my mind was saturated with the beautiful countryside and views I wanted to paint. I photographed the Eiffel Tower while I was in Paris, and that shot became the subject of the first painting I ever sold (I had painted it while waiting for discharge at Ft. Logan, Colorado near Denver). After discharge I settled at last in Huntsville, Texas.
I met and became the best of friends with a fellow named Nelson Rhodes who was also learning to paint and had had a course in art at Sam Houston (a local university). We joined the Conservative Arts Club of Houston and attended demonstrations and art shows for about two or three years. We both learned much from others through the shows and the well-known artists who demonstrated the basics of painting at club meetings. Our work began to improve, and as a result, it started to sell. Now my paintings have sold throughout the southern United States.
I retired from teaching electronics in 1988, and after a period of inactivity in painting while interested mainly in gardening and growing roses, I have now started back. I find that the rest has done me good as my ability to achieve what I want to a large degree has improved greatly. My heart goes into a painting and I become a part of that painting.
My first love is landscapes because they draw me closer to nature, and I try to be aware of every little aspect of nature and capture it. I have painted a number of flower arrangements and fruit bowls, but landscapes are still my favorite.
At 80 years of age, I have no occupation except to paint, grow roses and research my family genealogy.
I paint from photographs and a lot from scenes I see only in my mind. I often use portions of pictures I find from any source and use my imagination to alter them to suit myself.
I have just returned from a Tour of Ireland (May 2001) and have fallen in love with their beautiful countryside, castles, and gardens. I have over 300 photos and plan to start painting immediately.
