Today, we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Thomas Elias Lockhart, III.
Hi Dr. Lockhart, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I started drawing and painting when I was very young, around age seven or eight. I loved to draw as I became older, and my middle school and high school teachers helped cultivate my young gifts. I learned about many different artists in history, and I have been inspired by many others throughout my life. After leaving high school, I went to college for commercial art, now which is graphic design.
After I left college, I looked for jobs in graphic design, and it was a struggle to find a career in my degree because companies wanted so many years of experience. I did many other types of jobs, including years of freelance graphic design for independent companies. In the year 2000, my yearning for art grew into a passion. I wanted to become a professional artist. I began pursuing art. I painted in many different styles. This is very unconventional. I was told that I needed to develop a style if I was going to be recognized. I was told by other established artists that galleries would not carry my work because they believed that I was all over the place with my work.
They wanted me to narrow it down to a style and then later expand it as I became known. It just didn’t work for me. Years later, one of those artists returned to me and told me he was wrong. For over twenty-four years, I have been a very diverse artist. I paint what I feel. I pray over my work, and I ask Yahweh God to give inspiration for my work to the viewer. Art is not one-dimensional. It comes in many forms and many genres. My prayer is that my work will touch the buyer and everyone who comes in contact with it. I have been selling my work all across America and abroad for many years now. I have been a full-time artist for seven years and counting.
Within the last three years, I have received several international awards at major shows across America and through international magazines. I received an honorary doctorate in arts in culture last year, the 60 masters award, which is the Oscars of the art world. I have been in several magazines, and recently, I was on the cover of Who’s Who In America Millennium Magazine, as well as books. I have also been honored to be the only Black artist to be chosen with nine other artists around the world to be chosen to be part of an international documentary series called Art Titans Masters of a New Era.
This series is out now on Vivid Arts Network. There have been times I wasn’t sure of my calling as an artist, but I never gave up. I won’t ever give up. I found something that I would do without pay.
We all face challenges, but would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The struggles that I’ve had along the way have been mainly been understanding marketing. In this world of technology, marketing is continuously changing, and trying to understand the process of how it works for an artist can sometimes be very daunting.
But never fear. You can always ask questions about the technology that we have around us, and you can always learn a blueprint by studying other artists who are doing well. And sometimes, if you reach out to them, they are often willing to help you.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a mixed-media artist. I am a very diverse artist, and I paint in many different styles, using many different techniques and textures with my art. I work on canvas, wood, and paper, collaging different materials and using history and other knowledge that I have found over the years to help me complete my work.
The different things that set me apart from other artists are that I start on a blank canvas, and I work backward to complete my artwork, starting on the black canvas and moving up to many colors and collage techniques. I use myself as a separate artist from other artists who work in their medium profession.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
I like the fact that my city is very diverse. We have many different cultures here in the city. The thing that I like least about my city is that it is growing pretty quickly, and sometimes our roads are not capable of holding all of the traffic.
Our city is full of art, but I believe we still have a long way to go. Most of our shows here in Colorado are outdoor events, and I would love to have some indoor events That are professionally put together for Artists.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.lockhartgallery.com
- Instagram: @T_Lockhartgallery
- Facebook: Thomaselockhartgallery
