ABOUT ARD

HOWDY PARDS

ARD HERE.  WHEN I WAS LITTLE THERE WERE ONLY TWO DREAMS FOR ME.  ONE - TO DRAW PICTURES FOR CHILDREN’S BOOKS AND TWO- BE A COWBOY.  I AM HAPPY TO SAY THAT I HAVE BEEN ACTIVELY DOING BOTH FOR MANY YEARS NOW AND I AM SO GRATEFUL!  I GREW UP WITH LOTS AND LOTS OF BOOKS.  BOOKS ABOUT ANIMALS THAT I LIKED TO STUDY AND DRAW FROM.  I ALSO HAD PICTURE BOOKS BY ILLUSTRATORS LIKE STEVEN KELLOGG, H.A. REY, RICHARD SCARRY, GARTH WILLIAMS AND ROBERT LAWSON (THE GREAT ONES) BUT EVENTUALLY I CAME TO LOVE ALL KINDS OF BOOKS; EVEN NON-PICTURE BOOKS. (THANKS TO MRS. SAUNDERS)

I HAVE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO ILLUSTRATE OVER 30 PUBLISHED CHILDREN’S BOOKS AND EACH OF THEM WERE MY VERY FAVORITE AS I WORKED ON THE DRAWINGS.  EVERY TIME I ILLUSTRATE A BOOK  I HAVE TO “MOVE IN” TO THE STORY AND KINDA’ LIVE THERE, SO TO SPEAK, FOR A WHILE AS I DRAW.  CHARACTERS BECOME FRIENDS AND THEIR HOUSE BECOMES MY HOUSE TOO.  I SUPPOSE I HAVE ALWAYS LOVED A GREAT STORY.  I LIKE READING THEM, I LIKE TELLING THEM AND BOY DO I EVER LIKE DRAWING THEM.  LIFE IS ALL ABOUT THE STORY.

MY OWN STORY HAS HAD LOTS OF TWISTS AND TURNS, PLENTY OF ADVENTURE AND MORE THAN A FEW SET BACKS. THERE WERE THE YEARS AND STACKS OF MONEY I SPENT TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT TO DO WITH THE TALENTS I HAD BEEN GIVEN.  WHAT A RIDE THAT WAS!  I TRIED ARCHITECTURE BUT COULDN’T STAND THE STRAIGHT LINES (OR THE MATH), I WENT INTO MEDICAL ILLUSTRATION FOR A TIME AND WAS MADE OBSOLETE BY NEW 3D MODELING PROGRAMS, I WAS A T-SHIRT WIZARD AND DID MY PART HELPING THE COMPANY RISE ABOVE THE COMPETITORS (THAT WAS SO FUN- THANKS GIBBYS!), I HAVE TAUGHT ART IN SCHOOL (K-8) AND SCRUBBED LUNCHROOM TABLES AND SUFFERED MY FIRST MIGRAINE (THANK YOU KINDERGARTENERS!)  TEACHING SCHOOL TURNED OUT TO BE A HIGHLIGHT AND A BEAUTIFUL FEATHER IN MY CAP. THOSE KIDS INSPIRED ME AND I WAS SAD TO LEAVE FOR MY NEXT CREATIVE ADVENTURE IN GRAPHIC DESIGN AFTER A FEW YEARS.  BEING AN ARTIST REALLY ISN’T A DESTINATION BUT A LIFE.

SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDDLE OF ALL OF THAT I ATTENDED SCHOOL AND GRADUATED FROM THE ART CENTER COLLEGE OF DESIGN IN PASADENA, CA WHERE I LEARNED FROM THE BEST AND ADDED ALL SORTS OF NEW TOOLS TO MY ARTISTIC “TOOL BOX”.  MY BEAUTIFUL WIFE AND I HAD TWO DAUGHTERS WHEN WE ARRIVED IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FOR COLLEGE AND WE ADDED ANOTHER ONE WHILE THERE, AND THEN TWO MORE JOINED THE FAMILY IN ARKANSAS WHERE WE STILL LIVE TODAY.   THAT IS 5 GIRLS IN CASE YOU LOST COUNT!   BEING “DAD” TO ALL OF THESE BEAUTIES IS MY GREATEST BLESSING.  IT ALSO REMINDS ME THAT IF I EVER WANT TO FEEL SOME SENSE OF CONTROL — IT WILL HAVE TO BE IN MY DRAWINGS ‘CAUSE MY GIRLS AREN’T HAVING ANY OF IT!

HOME IN NW ARKANSAS IS A SMALL FARM COMPLETE WITH CATTLE, AN OCCASIONAL PIG OR TWO, FRUIT TREES, CHICKENS, BEEHIVES, BARN CATS AND THREE DOGS.  WILD!