“I was kind of embarrassed about liking to draw when I was a teenager. I didn’t want to tell my friends, ‘Hey, when I’m not hanging out with you guys, I’m in my room drawing Disney dogs.’ I figured they’d think I was weird.

“As I got older and explored more, I gained confidence. I stopped caring what people think and focused on what I enjoy.

“When I got into painting on canvas, pretty much all I did for two years was people’s pets. They weren’t that great, but it’s how I learned painting techniques. I didn’t want to be typecast as a pet portrait artist, though, so I told people I wasn’t going to do it anymore.

“Now that I’m in my 30s, I’ve gone back to being a kid again and paint what I like. I always loved to draw animals, so I started painting dolphins, whales, frogs, turtles and panda bears. I used to watch old horror movies with my grandparents, so that inspired me to paint Creature from the Black Lagoon, Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein.

“I’ve had good luck selling my originals. They usually fly out the door the day that I post them. And I’m continually amazed and thankful when someone pays $200 of their hard-earned money for something I did. Especially right now, when the economy is terrible and people are struggling. I work, too. I have a full-time job outside of this to help pay bills and put food on our table. Art is a luxury, not a necessity. So anytime someone buys from me, it blows my mind.

“When I was a little kid, my mom plastered brown packaging paper on my bedroom walls. She made it so that I could paint or do whatever I wanted. Even with my brothers and sisters, she ensured we had space to be ourselves, to express ourselves.

“I feel so fortunate that I found something as a child that I loved, and that I took care of it and nurtured it. Some people find things when they’re kids that they could be passionate about, but they don’t stick with it. I feel lucky that I have art in my life.”

— Jamie James

Follow Jamie James on Facebook, jamiiejames on Instagram, and JamieJamesArt on Etsy.

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“I was diagnosed with breast cancer, and they took it out. So now I’m going through radiation.

“I had anxiety for a long time. That’s one of the reasons I started painting rocks. I wanted to have something else to focus on. The very first time I saw a child get one of my rocks, that excited reaction just lifted my spirits.

“I have a friend, Betsy Wheeler, who also paints for the Baytown Rocks group. She’s always bringing me rocks and setting them on my doorstep when I’m not home. She used to work with my husband. So one time they met up and concocted a plan to hide some painted rocks in my house. I went into the bathroom and was like, wait, those are Betsy’s rocks. But how did they get in my bathroom? Throughout the day, I found more and more rocks around the house that she had painted.

“Another time, a lady I met online who is part of a group where she lives on Whidbey Island in Washington sent me five rocks painted by various artists.

“Things like that, and painting rocks myself, have definitely helped me get through this cancer experience. Just knowing that people are thinking about you and care for you, it makes a world of difference when you’re the one going through something like this.”

— Peggy Martin

Related:

• ‘Kindness of strangers really does go a long way’

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“Sometimes on Facebook you get to be friends with people you’ve never met in person. Loving art, I met this lady from Tacoma, Washington, named Michelle Osborne.

“She would post pictures showing the progression of her paintings. As I sat up late nights not being able to sleep, I would take her pictures and blow them up. And I saw these faces kind of hidden in the background. I saw a face of a little boy in one. I saw faces of dogs and cats in another. The more I kept looking at her paintings, the more faces I would notice.

“When I commented to her about it, she didn’t even realize they were there. I said, ‘Well, maybe those are your spirits that guide you.’ 

“One day we went to the Houston Zoo, and I took some pictures of animals that I put on Facebook. Michelle saw them and asked what was my favorite animal there. I told her it was this orangutan named Rudy.

“I used to take my grandchildren to the zoo, and they loved interacting with him. He was very inquisitive. I have photos of my grandson showing him a book and my granddaughter kissing him through the glass.

“Michelle said she wanted to paint a picture of Rudy for me, and that’s just what she did. She mailed it to me, and I thought it was just the kindest gesture. For someone I’ve never met to take the time to do that out of the goodness of her heart is so sweet. It really meant a lot to me. No matter how big or how small, no act of kindness goes unnoticed. The kindness of strangers really does go a long way.”

— Peggy Martin

Related:

• Rock art brings joy, comfort during cancer treatment

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“As a kid I was always drawing. And I was a mall rat because my mom worked there at Foley’s. So I would go to Waldenbooks, and one time I saw a Star Wars art book. It was just when the movie prequels were coming out. I thought the designs and concepts were pretty cool. It was amazing to think that you could create an entire world if you wanted. It was escapism for me. I asked for the book for Christmas that year, and I started copying and drawing what they were doing. That’s what I did throughout elementary school and junior high.

“Then in high school I was in advanced art. That’s pretty much what kept my GPA up because it counted for a credit and a half. I always had pressure from the teacher to do something. But by the end of my senior year, I was scrambling to put a portfolio together. Honestly, I was always that procrastinator. That was a moment where I didn’t take advantage of things. I think my entire 20s were pretty much the same way. I had fun, but I didn’t do what I could have done to pursue an art career.

“But I don’t want to dwell on those missed opportunities. That’s not going to help me. It’s just like, what do I do now? How do I move forward now? So that’s what started all this, these paintings and all the other work I’ve been creating this year. In January I started drawing again. I began painting. I’m going to turn 30 in October. I decided that the time has come for me to put my best foot forward with my art. If not now, when?”

— Joshua Villegas

Here are samples of recent work:

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• Pondering the link between success and happiness

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“I don’t just create murals. I’m a visual, small-scale painter, too.

“In the beginning, when I quit teaching middle school, I was supporting myself with my work. Then, when I was able to get some big mural jobs through corporations like Exxon and JP Morgan Chase, financially it was just a win-win for an artist.

“So many artists I know really, truly struggle. I’ve been fortunate to have opportunities to make some bigger sums of money at different times in my career. It definitely helps pay the bills.”

— Suzanne Sellers

Check out her work.

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• You never know who you’ll meet painting murals

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“I’ve been painting murals in the Houston area for 25 years. One of my favorite pieces is the Chase Bank mural, which I did in 2000. It was about 95 feet tall and 40 feet wide. It was sort of a montage of images representing the history of Houston.

“I loved doing that one, although I was up there so high. I used a cherry picker, and it was a bit nerve-wracking. When the lift stretches up to 95 feet, it tends to move a lot more. I was freaked out in the beginning. But I kept thinking, either I walk away from this or I overcome the fear.

“I had a lot of fun with that project. I got to know all these people downtown, like the policemen and UPS guys. I got to know when workers would take their lunch breaks and their smoke breaks. As it turned out, I also met my husband. He was in public relations there. We’ve been married now for 13 years.”

— Suzanne Sellers

Check out Suzanne’s work.

Related:

• Thankful she’s no longer a struggling artist

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“Normally, I don’t like attention. I was always the guy who sat in the back of class with my arms crossed, just watching everybody else. So everyone would ask, ‘Why do you want to be an artist? You don’t even like to talk when you’re in a group of people.’ But I figured, maybe it’s time to try something new and see what happens. If you never try, then you might never change.

“By getting into art, I’ve developed new skills, I’ve made new friends, and I feel like I have just expanded exponentially. It’s to the point where someone will say, ‘Hey, remember Adrian, that guy who was always so quiet in class? Well, he’s an artist now. He’s actually going to shows. He’s meeting people. He’s selling his work.’ That’s something I never would have imagined for myself.

“So one of the things I’ve learned is that you shouldn’t just settle into your same old routine. If you want to try drawing, go for it. If you want to play an instrument, go try. If you want to paint, go do it. Because for me, just by trying, I have completed about 40 paintings, I’m getting commissions on my work and I’m meeting lots of new people. Just by breaking from my old routine, it’s opened the door to new opportunities and possibilities. It’s all pretty awesome.”

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“We decided to go to Ross to see if there was anything on sale or clearance. As we were walking through the store, I noticed this little art kit for $12. It had brushes, canvases, everything. So I figured, why not?

“In school, I was never really into art. I couldn’t draw that well, and I would get easily frustrated and discouraged. But I took this kit home and tried it out. And I painted this tiny, little dragon holding the world. Looking back on it now, I know it wasn’t very good. But at the time, my friends who were artists kept encouraging me. That’s when I began to think, maybe this is something I could get into.

“To be honest, I’ve been very surprised. I could never have imagined painting warriors and birds and flowers and things. It has opened up a whole new world of imagination and creativity for me.

“My definition of an artist is someone who can express feelings through their physical work; feelings that other people might have a hard time expressing. If you can connect with someone else through your art by creating something that makes them feel and think, that’s the greatest thing in the world. That’s what I’m trying to do. And just by buying that little $12 kit from Ross, I’ve already been able to experience so much.”

— Adrian Sanchez

Adrian, 28, creates art under the name SkyWrex. Check out his work.

Related:

• Young artist moves out of his comfort zone
• Young couple are ‘living for the moment’

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“One of my biggest fears was whether my art would really stand out. I wasn’t sure if people would accept my work as being authentic and original. I wanted to know if I could actually make a living doing this.

“When I started, it was not easy. And it’s still not easy. I have to push myself everyday to keep it going. I have to try new things, new forms of art, whether it’s by hand or whether it’s digital. I prefer pencil. It’s my favorite. I do a lot of black and white portraits, unless something is requested in color.

“And I do most of it here. This is my home. This is my studio. It’s the place where I find rest, refuge, everything.

“All of these pictures that I have hanging up, they’re just reminders. These are pieces that I haven’t sold because they have a mark on them or they are unfinished or I never planned on selling them. They all took time, energy, effort and skill, all those things that I need to have with me everyday. So I get up, and this is what I see when I walk from my bedroom. This is what helps get me up and get me going every morning.”

— Welton Williams

Related:

• ‘Wherever my heart takes me, that’s where I go’
• Deaths of brother and mother inspire artist
• Artist’s hands help mend a grandfather’s heart

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“I love painting rocks. It’s basically all I think about all day long. I’ve been doing it almost a year now. I’ve probably done a few hundred.

“I started with small rocks, and now I’m doing projects on bigger rocks. I recently painted the Houston Texans logo on a 22-pound rock for someone’s birthday.

“I came up with this special badge that I painted for our four local K-9 police officers. A history teacher wanted a rock for her classroom, so I painted one showing the Texas flag, San Jacinto Monument and some other stuff on it.

“When I first started doing these I painted a rock that said, ‘The world without art is just eh,’ and I hid it. A woman’s daughter found it. She says her daughter always wanted to be an art teacher when she grows up. So I think my rock can help inspire her. It’s pretty exciting to be able to connect with people like that. I like making their day.”

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