Author, Artist and Teacher Lin Wellford
More than thirty years ago, I moved to the Ozark Mountains of Northwest Arkansas, and soon afterward, fell in love with the water tumbled rocks that lined the local creek banks. I loved the sizes and shapes and the naturalness of these rocks so much that I began collecting ones that looked like small potaoes and painting them into little wild rabbits. The transformation was magical! Soon I was painting all kinds of rock animals.
After many years of painting and selling my rock art, I was encouraged to write a how-to book describing my techniques. That first book, The Art of Painting Animals on Rocks, did so well that I ended up writing a whole line of books on various ways rocks can be used to create unique works of art.
The success of my books lead to guest appearances on a number of nationally televised craft shows, including four segments on The Carol Duvall Show on HGTV, a huge favorite with crafters all over the country.I also taught at national and regional painting conventions, and sought out ways to show people of all ages what a fun and exciting, not to mention inexpensive, art activity rock painting can be. My work has been published in scores of magazines and newspaper articles over the years, and foreign editions of my books include Italian, Japanese, Korean, Thai, German and others..
At one time I described my work as turning rocks into art, but slowly I've come to realize that my true vocation is turning people into artists. Nothing beats the thrill of hearing from someone who was convinced they didn't possess an ounce of talent until they tried rock painting. "Now I'm selling my work and people call me an artist!" they tell me. Finding a satisfying creative outlet can be a truly life-changing experience..
While I no longer do much travel teaching, I still enjoy introducing new people to the fun of painting on rocks. My husband and I still live in the Ozark Mountains of Northwest
After many years of painting and selling my rock art, I was encouraged to write a how-to book describing my techniques. That first book, The Art of Painting Animals on Rocks, did so well that I ended up writing a whole line of books on various ways rocks can be used to create unique works of art.
The success of my books lead to guest appearances on a number of nationally televised craft shows, including four segments on The Carol Duvall Show on HGTV, a huge favorite with crafters all over the country.I also taught at national and regional painting conventions, and sought out ways to show people of all ages what a fun and exciting, not to mention inexpensive, art activity rock painting can be. My work has been published in scores of magazines and newspaper articles over the years, and foreign editions of my books include Italian, Japanese, Korean, Thai, German and others..
At one time I described my work as turning rocks into art, but slowly I've come to realize that my true vocation is turning people into artists. Nothing beats the thrill of hearing from someone who was convinced they didn't possess an ounce of talent until they tried rock painting. "Now I'm selling my work and people call me an artist!" they tell me. Finding a satisfying creative outlet can be a truly life-changing experience..
While I no longer do much travel teaching, I still enjoy introducing new people to the fun of painting on rocks. My husband and I still live in the Ozark Mountains of Northwest
Lin poses with Carol Duvall after taping one of the four segments that appeared on HGTV's The Carol Duvall Show
