Someone once told me that realism isn’t art. The artist is just copying what’s already there and  is therefore not expressing themselves. I’ve heard this a lot since then and I would just like to take a moment to tell you how I feel.

I express myself through realism. Many artists express themselves beautifully through abstract or impressionistic work but I don’t. I feel unfulfilled when I attempt these styles. I love realism. It’s hard to do. It’s labor intensive and takes hundreds of hours of my life. My back aches at the end of the day but when I see what I’ve accomplished I smile.

Realism allows me to share with the world my love for people, for nature, for animals, for life. It allows me to say what I don’t know how to say with words. If you want to know how I feel about mankind, look into the eyes of The Soldier’s Father. If you want to know why I can’t bring myself to harm even a fly look at the Little Red Squirrel and see the little paws and eyes and ears that took so many hours of my life. See what I see when I look at the almost magically beautiful world around me. This is who I am. This is how I experience life and realism allows me to share that with you. I am filled with gratitude and wonder that I have been given the opportunity to experience life and I hope my art speaks this to you.