Marc A Pitman » Ohio Artist Registry

How can I not sound boring? Keep it brief, right? I come from a working class family where making art wasn’t looked down upon, it just wasn’t noticed. My families idea of artistic success was setting up a booth at the county fair and drawing characters. I want to be an artist, when asked what I wanted to do with my life and to that my dad replied, “No, really? What do you want to do? You cannot be a starving artist.” With that piece of advice tucked away in my heart went out into the world and attended Wright State University where I studied film under Julia Reichert and Jim Klien. Finding school too daunting a task and way too expensive for my lower middle class sensibility I started work at local television stations where I quickly was adopted as the “art” guy.

It wasn’t until I was in my mid fifties and was diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia, and when I say rare I mean “we don’t know what this is and there is no cure, here take these pills” rare, that I found the freedom to quit my day job and focus completely on my art. I am so blessed, I know that sounds corny by it’s try. I don’t feel alive unless I have put brush to canvas and covered in splotches of green, indigo and mixable white paints. My latest mantra, slogan or logo is (you can’t make it this far in life with out a half dozen of them) You’re only an artist if you feel like you would die if you weren’t an artist.

I am so humbled by this experience. Thank you

Marc A. Pitman