Late for School Painting

I started to take an interest in drawing and painting when I was about 10 years old .This was a period of my life when both my parents were active hobby artists.My dad used a number of different mediums,such as pencil,pen,chalk pastel and oils to depict his favorite subjects which was wildlife.My mom on the other hand loved using watercolor and enjoyed painting people and animals.So it was in this environment that my creativity was nurtured.As a family we lived in a number of different locations in Southern Africa often in remote and wild areas which resulted in my growing love for the landscape,people and wildlife of Africa. When I was 13 our family moved to Botswana where I continued to paint using watercolors and Acrylic.At this time I was greatly inspired by other wildlife artists such as Paul Augustinus and Paul Bosman. I would diligently study any book or magazine that featured these artists and try to improve my artistic skills.When I was 15, I sold my first painting of some Cape buffalo for $10 When I was 17 we all moved to Kasane,a small border town on the banks of the Chobe River.This area has the highest concentration of elephants in the world and a rich variety of African wildlife.While we built a rustic house we camped next to a waterhole in a place called Elephant Valley.It was here I fell in love with elephants and I painted a number of large paintings of these fascinating giants. I was now selling oil paintings on a regular basis through an art gallery in Kasane called the African Easel.I even spent a short period of time working at that gallery where I was able to study up close original works by Kieth Joubert,Mandy Shepherd,Sue Stolberger,and a number of other well know wildlife artists. Since then I haven't stopped painting. Although I still paint wildlife, I have focused more on capturing the local African way of life,which because of modernization is fast disappearing. Like many, I am inspired by past artists,just a few of my favorites are Winslow Homer,Joquin Sorolla,and Andrew Wyeth.I love artwork that tells a story something I try to incorporate into my work. Aside from selling most of my work locally within Southern Africa,I have also sold and shipped paintings to America,UK,Canada,Australia,Sweden,Thailand,and Russia. I love the whole creative process and for that reason I will to continue telling stories through my art.