Art is my job now, and has been since I retired a few years back from over forty-six years with a sales management career in business. I knew all along  that when I retired, I would find a way to get involved with art on a professional basis, either as an artist, or as a writer of art, or as a promoter of art and artists, or all three. It seems I’m heading into the all three category, trying to organize my time to do each.

Art has always been in the family. My father was a sign painter, and he was also a very good fine artist. I distinctly recall as I grew up that there were always beautiful paintings hanging on the walls of our modest home, paintings that my father did in his spare time (from two jobs). I was especially proud of the works of his that hang on the walls of the small church we attended. One of my favorites was the large pastoral scene that took up the wall behind the baptistery.

My brother, Lynn Burton, is also an artist in the family who has been actively and professionally doing art for more than a half of a century. He made his first dollar painting pin-stripes on teenagers hot rods in the 1950s in the wild-and-woolly western town of Carlsbad, New Mexico, where we grew up.

At nineteen years old he started his sign business in Lubbock, Texas, and has continually painted (on the side) some beautiful pieces of fine art. His Gallery of just a few of his many paintings are able to be viewed by clicking on the Lynn Burton Gallery at the top of this page. His lessons to me (although, many are on the phone long distance) have been the subject of some of the hundreds of blogs I’ve posted on this sight.

My daughter’s late father-in-law, James Frederick, was probably one of the finest artists that I ever met. His work in all different media had such a classic touch to them that I am shocked he didn’t pursue art as his chosen profession. However, it was probably as my father always told me, if you want to make art your profession, prepare to starve or be single forever…and you’ll still probably starve. Thank goodness, James decided to be a family man or I wouldn’t have the beautiful grand children I do.

And speaking of grand-children, my grand-daughter Olivia is showing talent.

She recently married (you can read about her wedding in the three blogs posted by clicking on the picture of the lion that she drew while still in high-school [below]), and now has returned from her honeymoon anxious to get started with her art.

So you can see, being surrounded by art and artists all my life, why wouldn’t I wish to pursue art for what is left of the rest of my life?

My aim is to help make art and artists accessible, so as many people as possible can share the joy it has brought me. You’ve probably heard me say it before, but my main goal is to progress art through awareness.

As so many artists have told me, the inspiration for their work is what they see around them. This is the same for me. I like what I see, and in the things that I see, I see stories. If somehow I can pass along with the depiction of my work, the semblance of something alive (or once may have been), and the beauty of my surroundings forever etched or painted on a substrate of paper, panel, or canvas then so be it.