I am a self-taught artist, a transplant from Sarasota, Florida. I have been painting for over 35 years, creating residential and commercial murals as well as paintings, barstools, and many other things, before moving to Lake Lure about six years ago.
I really love what I do, and the most enjoyable part of my involvement in art is getting to know the people I meet in the process. I joined the Lake Lure Artists group, and this community of artists is amazing. Each person has his or her own creative talent, and everyone is willing to share and support each other; that’s what makes the group fantastic.
In Florida, my art revolved around tropical scenes, ocean landscapes, and fish. The move to Lake Lure meant I needed to change my style of painting to what I would call “northern art”. One of the Lake Lure artists suggested that I paint bears since they were a popular subject matter. It seemed to me, just from a quick look at artists’ depictions of bears here, that they all appeared the same, so I decided to do something different. I started painting bear faces on large canvases and made a name for myself around Lake Lure.
My style of painting is brilliant, outgoing and flowing, like my personality. My murals and other works have been written about in the Palm Beach Post, the Sun-Sentinel, Marlin Magazine, and Florida Design. In North Carolina. I’ve also been covered in the Lincolnton Post, the Hendersonville Times News, and Lake Lure’s Mountain Breeze.
Years ago, I was commissioned to create a mural in Las Vegas for the Tanked television show on Animal Planet. The show flew me out to Las Vegas for two weeks to paint an underwater scene on an 80 x 10 ft wall of their building. A separate mural commission took me to the Bahamas.
Upon arriving in North Carolina, my first murals were for the Hands On! Children’s Museum in Hendersonville, and I painted several interior walls for them. I also painted “I Beg Your Garden”, a colorful floral “mural” on the torso of one of Hendersonville’s Main Street Bears. The bear was sold for $10,000, with the proceeds benefiting Bullington Gardens, a botanical garden that works with special needs kids. Other commissions in the vicinity include work at the Hendersonville golf course, as well as a mural of a film strip reel on the outer wall of the Tryon movie theater.
Within Lake Lure, you have probably noticed my paintings on the signs and building of the Grey Hawk restaurant on Memorial Highway that feature exotic birds and colorful flowers. I also painted murals at the Carter Lodge in Chimney Rock which, sadly, were destroyed in Hurricane Helene. Several residential homes within the Rumbling Bald Resort have one of my custom murals on their walls, and one of my bears is at the resort coffee shop.
I really love Lake Lure and enjoy all the beauty and wonders this region has to offer. A wealth of art can be found in and around Lake Lure, with different expressive styles in galleries as well as homes. You can see more of my murals and custom paintings on my website: artexplosionofsouthflorida.com
Our Lake Lure Artists group brings together painters of various mediums, potters, gourd and fiber artists, fluid artists, stained glass artists, and so much more. There’s a lot of creativity in this small town, and everyone’s willing to share their love of art. It’s a wonderful group. Hope to see you at one of the next meetings.
