If I hear the term “3-D” before anything, I get skeptical. 3-D movies can he hard to watch and 3-D TV never really took hold the way that many thought it would. After meeting “accidental artist” Steven Walden at the 2018 National, I’m “all in” in his 3-D art.
Born and raised in Arkansas, but now living in St. Louis, Walden had one of the most colorful booths at this year’s National (#2169). Bright and bold works of art that look remarkable by themselves, but get even better when Walden himself hands you a pair of 3-D glasses. The sports art immediately jumps off the canvas.
‘I’m a 3-D artist, and when you take a look at my art with some 3-D glasses, it looks like it floats right off the surface,” explains Walden.
Walden’s art depicts some of the biggest names and moments in sports. He then tries to the pieces autographed by the subjects.
These are great pieces, but Walden’s story is just as interesting.
“I’m an accidental artist and I didn’t know that I could paint until four years ago. This is my second National and is what I now do full-time. I work coast-to-coast with a lot of teams, athletes and charities.”
Walden may have mentioned “charities” last, but don’t let that fool you. His artwork has raised over $200,000 for charitable efforts over the last four years.
“Right now, it’s a one-man operation, so I handle everything: designing the site, marketing, promotion, customer service, ordering and keeping stock of inventory, mailing out orders, and social media interactions.”
And also the painting, of course. Even without the 3-D glasses, you can still appreciated the art work.
“It’s one of the reasons I love doing this,” adds Walden. “I love the technology involved and at an event like this, you see the same jerseys and cards again and again and again. So what I hear from a number of people is that they want something new and fresh.”
Walden uses mainly canvas and acrylic in his works that he has on exhibit in his hometown of St. Louis, but also New York and San Francisco. Walden studies color contrasts to get his unique results.
“I love studying the effects of color,” he admits.
Many of the athletes Walden paint own his work, and he’s here at the National to get new pieces signed. One in particular is a large canvas of Hulk Hogan.
Adam Wainwright and Brett Hull are among Walden’s customers. Walden says they have great reactions when they see themselves as part of the art.
“It makes me feel good and it’s one of the biggest compliments when they like it,” says Walden. “Being able to see Jim Kelly (at the National) and to see the wonderful reaction he had as well as Jerry Kramer, and to hear the story behind what I painted makes it so fun.
You can see more about Walden and his 3-D art as well as check out his works at: www.stevenwalden.com
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