I was raised in the rural countryside of North Carolina. My parents were hardworking, strict, religious
people. I stayed in their disfavor as my ambitions and love for art
was considered a waste of time and paper. My escape from this harsh
environment became rooted in a silent world of fantasy, creation and the
privacy of my mind’s eye. I knew I had a love for art and the desire
to pursue it burned within, yet I too came to believe it was a waste of
time. Over the years I have used my talents in situations which would
arise but never really pursued it as a career.
When I met my wife, Sherry and she
saw my drawings she felt I had a natural talent. She has encouraged
me to draw and paint and even attempted to get me to enroll in the Memphis
Academy of Arts. However, making a living and raising children left
our hope for college unrealized. I worked as a house painter for
a long time and art was my hobby. In the late 1980’s faux finishing
and decorative painting became popular and I found a way to use my talent
to make a living. I started doing work painting murals and doing
sign work. For the past ten years I have been self-employed as a
decorative painter and recently completed my largest project at String
‘N Things music store in Memphis, TN. I call this kind of work "art
by demand". By that I mean I do what the customer wants.
I prefer my art because I paint what I want.
I have only just begun. I feel
as though the seed of my existence has sprouted and greenery will 
flourish
and colorful beauty will bloom in my future and joy for those who I reach
through my colors.
Fantasies of unseen things
flow through my imagination and find their way to colorful expressions.
Emotion provokes me into lashing of shapes. A child wishing to be
rescued materializes into the knights in shiny armor and a deep emotional
spiritual experience allows the life after to be expressed in the here
and now.
Untrained, having never learned anything
about the art world, I feel explosive as images pour out on to my canvas.
I believe nothing is ever what it appears to be. Some of my work
reflects my unique perception of the world, some are from my spiritual,
social, personal experiences and some are fantasy, or are they? Excitement
engulfs me each time I pick up my brushes because I learn more every day
and become closer to my real meaning for life.
In November 1999, my wife posted
a couple of my watercolors on ebay and they sold. Slowly we have
put more up and they sold. My wife (the computer nerd in the family)
created a web site for my art. A lot of the work on the web site
has been sold on ebay. I plan to enter the Folk Fest in Atlanta,
Georgia in August. It will be the first time I have entered an art
show. My goal is to make a living selling my art.
Ron Byrum
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