Evan Smith

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I don’t know how inclined I was as a child to draw. I remember once buying some oil pastels and using them until consumed. Unfortunately, I did not have a way to replenish them. I loved the vivid colors oil pastels produced. To me painting is all about color. I never really liked team sports, although I wrestled through High School following in my dad’s footsteps. I have sister who loves art, but all my siblings branded her as the “weird one’. Not an environment to encourage artistic expression. But we did vacation at National Parks, and I think in part that is where I learned my love for nature. Fast forward to my middle age years. I was on vacation coloring and my daughter suggested I draw something instead. With reluctance I did, and you know what? It stunk. But by my third picture, most agreed it was good. So, I kept practicing. I moved from colored pencils to Soft pastels. But Soft Pastels get dust everywhere and the artwork is easily damaged. Using Oil Pastel’s solved those problems and I love the vivid colors they produced.