By Retta Edling, reporter
Lawson Barney discovered his inner artist two years ago and is now painting his future at PPCC.
“I’ve been doing music for 15 years or so, but I felt there is something about a painting versus a song that hit me more intimately,” said Barney, a first semester art student at PPCC.
He found his passion for art almost by happenstance.
“I started off as a fan of artists and lived near some who were teaching classes. I was inspired by them not only as artists, but as teachers, too,” Barney explained.
After two years of private study, Lawson jumped into his first semester here and is pursuing an AA before going on to earn a teaching degree.
Pursuing teaching as an avenue to support himself as an artist was inspired by his mother who is also a teacher.
“Ideally, I would be teaching from my own studio. Being able to say that I have a teaching degree is a huge boost for lessons,” Lawson said.
Inspired by the work of Christian Van Minnen and several others, Barney works mostly in surrealism and figurative styles.
He won a “Best Fine Art” award in the 2017 Tattoo Masquerade in Denver and looks forward to entering more art competitions as he is able.
His older work can be viewed here and his originals and newer work are available by contacting him via email.
