Julie Hammond

For as long as I can remember, I have been drawing. I probably learned more about art by drawing with my siblings at home than I have from any professional teachers or art classes. I think I learned a lot because we enjoyed what we were doing—love of the arts was a way of life for us. My sisters and brother taught me many useful things.

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When I began college, I intended to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, but it soon became clear that refining that talent wouldn't happen at college. The artistic community at that time had little patience for representational artists, and I have always been one. Most teachers tried to reshape me into an abstract artist or modernist, but that expression, that outlook, is utterly alien to me. So I changed course and decided to just do art independently, as I pleased, without the degree. It was one of the best decisions I ever made because it kept my inspiration true and my spirit free.

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My influences are wide, from the earlier favorites Michelangelo, Bernini, Rembrandt, and Friedrich, to late 19th-century artists generally and artists of the Symbolist movements in particular. My favorite 19th century artists are Van Gogh, Lévy-Dhurmer, Carrière, Böcklin, and Delville.