Jims story of Art

Our weekly contest winner, Jim Schultz , shares his journey of art

• Jim, when and why did you get interested in art?

I am a part-time artist who has always loved drawing. I also work as an engineer for NASA. Several of my drawings are selfies of astronauts out on space walks. I love to draw realistic graphite pencil drawings of people, animals, and scenery. My goal is to make my drawings look like photographs. I am self-taught and most of my drawing techniques have come through trial and error. You can see my work at https://1-james-schultz.pixels.com/

• What triggered your interest in art or served as your inspiration?

I have loved drawing as long as I can remember. I have always been awed by the great artists like Leonardo Da Vinci, Michelangelo, and others and love their realistic art. To me, that takes real talent.
My family, friends, and teachers have always encouraged me to draw and one of my coworkers convinced me to put my artwork out on art websites so others could see it.
The world is full of awesome beauty and I try to capture a snap shot of that on paper using graphite pencils. Being an engineer, I always want to understand how things work which I believe helps me create more realistic drawings.

• Jim, are there any particular areas that you like to work upon?

I’m always looking for new techniques to make my drawings look like photographs. Over the years I have learned a lot of techniques for drawing different things such as hair, fur, skin, eyes, etc. to make them look more realistic. I’m always looking for ways to improve and welcome any suggestions or techniques others have learned.

• Where do you see yourself in future as an artist?

I plan to keep on drawing in my free time. I always look for new challenging things to draw and bring to life. My passion is to be a full-time artist.

• If you had to give a message to all aspiring artists out there, what would that be?

Art is like the seed of a fruit tree. If the seed is nurtured and tended it will produce beautiful blossoms and fruit for the world to see, enjoy, and cherish. If it is put in a box and ignored, the world will ever know what beauty they have never seen.

To get to know more about our contests and more about Jim, check out our website today at
1-catf.pixels.com