Meet Etsy Artist: shellybedsaul

Shelly jokes that she is a "crotchety old broad on the surface, but my art tells the story of a whimsical dreamer." According her parents she has always been into art. "My mother said I ate a tube of her Prussian Blue oil paint, so it's in my blood." Her artistic eye allows her to "see the humor in tragedy and irony in everything. I see glory in the mundane and perfection in our flaws." Some of her work is inspired by Buddhism and other philosophies, and she has coined the phrase "Symbolist painting" to describe such works. "My art instructor in high school called it Stylized Realism," she explains, "representation with my own twist on the subject." She enjoys dabbling in all things creative ("No medium is safe from me") - and a single piece could include colored pencil, ink, oils, acrylics, textiles, wood, block printing, or the like. "Art is my job, my hobby, my joy," she says. "I'm primarily self taught and have always believed in will over talent. It takes a bit of obsessive/compulsive disorder to truly train yourself to your full capacity with or without the benefit of education. It has been the bane of 3 marriages, 2 children and anything close to a tidy house, but after 55 years, it's finally paying off and my goals are being realized." She hopes to delve even further into her art and "be consumed and maybe bring a little beauty into someone's life." She credits Etsy and it's supportive members for "making this 'Foole's Dream' a reality." Please check out her shop: http://shellybedsaul.etsy.com/

-Wendy Baylis

Dharma Designs

http://dharmadesigns.etsy.com/