Anthony Stollings
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Born
on December 15, 1953, in a small town outside of Cincinnati, Ohio, Anthony
Stollings is the second child of eight.
He is known in the art world for his creativity, talent and
generosity of spirit. His
values have always been to enlighten and teach people about the human
spirit and how to heal yourself. Much
of his artwork illustrates this deep-rooted need we all have to over-come
any obstacles in our lives that prevent us from being all
that we can be.
Anthony’s
interest in art came about by watching his father paint portraits of his
mother and seven siblings. Regrettably,
his father did not have the luxury of pursuing his dream of becoming a
career artist. Fortunately
for us, he was able to instill in his son the beauty and the pain
of being an artist. Anthony
also inherited much of his mother’s creativity.
Mrs. Stollings, in addition to being a mother, a housewife, and a
working woman, also wrote beautiful poetry.
Anthony’s
artwork was influenced by Robert Duncanson and by the masters at the
Cincinnati Art Museum. While
working at the Museum, the master’s work helped influence his sense of
color and style. Being a self-taught artist,
Anthony has put innumerable hours into his work.
It is both his heart and soul. Art enthusiasts have been able to
feel the depth of emotion he reveals in his work.
9-1-1 is a powerful piece which he created after viewing the tragedy on television. That night, he dreamed there was a man who had been hurt and individuals were trying to tell him not to go back into the wreckage. Anthony says, “ Sometime you have to put a value on things. He had hurt his shoulder but he had to go get the flag. He put the flag around his waist and wasn’t coming out until he could bring the flag with him. I added the rips in the flag to symbolize the rips in our country, which is part of the American way. The man in the painting is an everyday person, and that is what America was build on - every day people doing the best we can with what we have to work with.”