“If you really want to be an artist, there is no better time in your life to try than right now!”
These wise words were spoken to me by my father, who had gone with me to see a potential studio space. The rent was $350 a month, a fortune to me at the time. As I stood there, unsure I could afford the rent, or the length of the lease, my father didn’t hesitate for a moment, and with unwavering support, told me to go for it.Michael Shane Neal and his dad, Wayne.

My mom and dad, Donna and Wayne Neal, both came from modest beginnings. My father worked for the same company in the bakery business for nearly 40 years. My mother was a stay-at-home mom until I was a teenager when she went to work as a secretary. Neither had an opportunity to attend college. Growing up, we didn’t have original art in our home, nor did we visit museums. I dare say the only artist any of us could have named was Norman Rockwell. Their only son loved to draw as a kid, and they always encouraged me.

Marshall Bouldin, Maestro Simon Kooyman, oil, 41 x 48" (104 x 121 cm)

 In college, I was a science major for my first two years, but midway through I told my parents I wanted to take art classes instead. My dad, who was paying for my education and had recently gotten a second mortgage in order to do so, didn’t say “ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?” or even simply “NO!” He and my mother who was the first to suggest I might enjoy a college art class didn’t say one discouraging word. Why, when so many parents tell their children they can’t become an artist, quoting the often-used line “You’ll starve!” were my parents so supportive?

Jason Bouldin, Jimmy Allgood, oil, 49½ x 34" (125 x 86 cm)

 When the artist Marshall Bouldin (1923-2012), who received the Gold Medal from the Portrait Society of America in 2012, asked his father if he could study art, his father’s initial response was not enthusiastic. The Bouldins were farmers in Clarksdale, Mississippi where they had been growing crops for generations and the expectation was Marshall would work in the family business. After enrolling at the Arts Student League of Chicago in 1941 and spending time during WWII at an aircraft factory drawing blueprints, he began doing magazine covers, but unhappy with the direction of his career, he came back home, unsettled, but willing to honor his father and help manage their family farm. Not long after he married in 1954, his wife Mary Allen “Mel” Bouldin shared with him her dream to be a doctor.  One night in the late 1950s, after seeing a program on television about a female doctor, Marshall said to his wife, “Let’s go to Memphis in the morning and see what we need to do to enroll you in medical school.” While Mel studied medicine, Marshall would draw from her anatomy books at night. Eventually, Dr. Mel Bouldin would become among the first female obstetrics and gynecology physicians in Mississippi, and Marshall would soon realize his own dream of becoming a portrait artist. By 1968, Marshall was one of the most sought-after artists painting portraits in the U.S. That same year he was commissioned to paint the daughters of President Richard Nixon for $12,000 ($90,000 today). The Bouldins’ son, Jason, would also become an artist, an early supporter of the Portrait Society, he was awarded the Draper Grand Prize in 2002 and later served as a PSoA faculty member.

Everett Raymond Kinstler, John Hope, oil, 46 x 36" (116 x 91 cm)

 

Dean Mitchell, Grandmother, acrylic, 9 x 14" (22 x 35 cm)

Dean Mitchell, one of the most successful artists working today told his mother as a young man that he wanted to be an artist, but she wasn’t encouraging. She felt a young African American man could never succeed in such a profession. But his grandmother, Marie Brooks, was very supportive and encouraged the young artist to follow his passion. Dean says, “My grandmother’s love, dignity, and respect for others has shaped my life. Her moral and spiritual influence gave me a sense of self-worth, pride, and the inner strength to pursue my dreams. Family, community, and a place to feel safe was important to her. Education was always stressed along with hard work. My grandmother would often say, ‘Baby, ain’t nobody gonna give you nothing. You gotta work for what you want in life.’” Dean now owns a gallery in Quincy, Florida, named for his grandmother.

When Everett Raymond Kinstler (1926-2019) came to his father at the tender young age of 15 and said he wanted to drop out of high school to become an artist, his father was supportive. He said to the teenager, “You’re a lucky young man. You’re going to be able to earn your living doing something you enjoy. Don’t ever forget it.” Everett, as his closest friends called him, went on to become a comic book artist and illustrator before turning to portraiture in the late 1950s. He completed over 2,500 portraits in his more than 75-year career.

Recently, my father was diagnosed with cancer. Life is so short, and time passes quickly. This reality has caused me to reflect a lot on our life together as father and son and the love and support that both he and my mother have given me all of my life. They have never stopped encouraging me and have been there for every step of my career for more than 30 years.

Michael Shane Neal and his artistic mentor Everett Raymond Kinstler.

 

When I think back to that day in what would become my first studio when my father basically said, “Go for it!” I now see more clearly how incredibly wise he was and how important it is to have others who believe in you. Dad also knew there is something more important in life than just following the herd—that it is far better to allow you to choose your own destiny, to try to do the thing that makes you most happy, win or lose. If I wasn’t going to succeed, I would find that out on my own. But if I did, I would be more blessed than those who may have chosen a career strictly for the income potential. Dad knew instinctively that I would be richer by far following my passion and living out my dreams. 

Over the many years I have been teaching, I have had dozens of students who have been doctors, lawyers, accountants, business owners, stay at home moms, etc. who have said to me that they wish they could have had careers as artists, but their parents talked them out of saying, “You’ll never make a living.” The good news is, it’s never too late to pursue your dreams! Surround yourself with those who encourage, love, and support you. You’ll find lots of people who will tell you that you can’t, as well as those who will say you can. They are both right, but who will you choose to believe? 

Sincerely,
Michael Shane Neal,
Chairman