Interstate Life

This view along southbound Interstate 81 in Virginia is the smallest work in my series of minis this year, yet I probably have to most to say about it. I've been a professional artist for twenty years, and I've made it work by taking my paintings to events around the country and sharing them with a wide range of interested patrons. Needless to say, I spend a lot of time on our nation’s interstates, and moments like this are an all-too-familiar sight to me.

Earlier this fall, I gave a presentation to the Tennessee Artists Association and, at the end of my talk, an audience member asked me, "How have you succeeded as an artist?" Her question caught me flat-footed, and I paused a bit before answering with the first thing that popped into my mind, "I worked really, really hard." Including spending many hours on the road.