July 2007 Issue

Al Parkinson

Age: 46

Home: Huron

 

Style: Realism. "My forte is Western art."

 

Who owns his work: Jack Nicholson, Reba McIntyre and songwriter Steve Cropper ("Dock of the Bay"), among others. He has done a variety of paintings and carved wooden doors for Sawmill Creek Resort, where he is resident artist.

 

Training: Ohio State University and the Columbus College of Art and Design. But he also honed skills at, of all places, Ford Aerospace. "I was a product designer for them in the '80s ... It taught me to be meticulous and accurate."

 

Tools: Not just brushes and oils. When he's working in three dimensions - silver, copper, brass, stainless steel or bronze - he wields welders and plasma cutting torches.

 

Why he enjoys painting on commission: It's a chance to forge a relationship with an artwork's owner. "At the end I gift the owner the finish brush, which still has some of the pigments on it," he says. "And I give them photographs of the canvas in process in a coffee table book."

 

How long it takes to paint a portrait: "Figure around six weeks," he says. And seven to eight layers of paint. "By the end, it's more realistic than the photo I'm working from."

 

It wouldn't be possible without: His family - his kids (Jake, Logan, Alaina, Vaughn and Faith), his parents, and significant other Elizabeth.

 

What people say when they walk up to one of his paintings: "Who did that?" Which is why, on every canvas, next to his signature, he writes "that's who."