Art? Not Art?

I'm often asked where I get the abundance of content to write about. Sometimes I wonder myself – especially now as we enter art's summer doldrums. But having done this for a number of years, I know there is always a story just around the corner. It happened today.

While walking down the historic downtown pedestrian mall here in Charlottesville, I spotted a famed artist with his easel up and brush in motion. People were gathering. Snapshots were being taken. Not often does this happen even in this self-proclaimed culturally endowed enclave of a town. I went to check it out. Low and behold, it was Smithfield (yes, all the great ones go by only one name). A rare sighting indeed. Outside his Virginia farm, sightings of Smithfield have been relegated to large scale media programs like The Ellen Show, Regis & Kelly, and America’s Got Talent. Smithfield has also been known to show up at the local county fair kissing booth (good marketing for any artist).

For the record... Smithfield is a painting pig. A popular artist. A famous one at that. Just the kind of artist people really can identify with. Although he specializes in the challenging genre of abstraction, he does the occasional narrative and representational piece. People eat it up. And at $50 a piece, he is on the cutting edge of making fine art accessible to the public. Gotta love old Smithfield.

   

Even his website is professional. I can't tell you how many artist's websites I've seen that open with an introduction just like Smithfield's:

Welcome! My name is Smithfield and here you can get more information on me and my art. This site includes my portfolio and the services that I offer. As an enthusiastic artist I am always looking to be part of a new and exciting project.

I provide creative, reliable, and timely service with professionalism and care. Please take a look around to see examples of distinctive style and let me know if you are interested in hiring me or purchasing my work.

Thanks for dropping through Charlottesville, Smithfield... and giving me something to shake my head at.

[Images include: Left, Unicorn; Center, Duck Reflection In Water; and Right, George Washington (man on horse).]