I studied Studio Art (same as “Fine Art”) at Cal State Long Beach. In one of my final classes, I stayed afterwards talking with the instructor, who was impressed with a particular piece I’d done. He asked what I wanted to do with my career – I told him I’d like to work as a fine-art editorial illustrator. He paused, looked me dead in the eye, and said, “don’t sell yourself short.”
Thing is, I guess the world of galleries never appealed to me even then. I’d rather have my stuff seen by everyone, not just the kind of people who go to galleries – like my relative Thomas Hart Benton, who got more out of hanging his paintings in a bar than a gallery.
Art should be for everybody – not dumbed down, but accessible. Not like Thomas Kinkade, either.
I too, took the route of design as a means to an end financially and just in the last few years have “found my voice” as an editorial illustrator, developing a singular style that’s starting to gain notice.