We were lucky to catch up with Jim Stevens recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Jim thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

I was shot in the head in Vietnam and it left bullet fragments in my head. Twenty-three years later, one of those fragments caused a stroke in my visual cortex, taking all but a pin dot of my vision and leaving me legally blind in just 30 minutes.

I lost my job teaching at the University of Colorado, ended up divorced and was suddenly the blind single parent of two pre-teen daughters. I also stopped doing the artwork I had loved so much. My bouts with depression and anger were crushing at times, so much so that I destroyed most of my unfinished art, notes, drafts, and records.

But in 2000, at the ceaseless urging of my two daughters, I determined to reinvent myself and become a full-time artist despite my disability. It was a huge risk and failure seemed more likely than success, but I had to try. My first goal was finding a variety of special lenses to help with my technical skills … and then began a long, frustrating two-year struggle to relearn my craft without the eyesight an artist so desperately needs.

At the same time, again at the insistence of my daughters, I also began the unlikely study of the martial arts.

Despite the setbacks and frustrations, I refused to quit either of my new life goals.

Today, my award-winning art is galleried across the country and my paintings, scrimshaw, and other works of art are collected internationally. I have invented two entirely new monochromatic painting techniques and have written three books on art, published by Schiffer Publishing. In 2010, I was honored as a registered Kennedy Center Artist in the artist affiliate program of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and I am also the recipient of the U.S. Veterans Administration National Gold Medal for Fine Art.

At age 51, I also became the only legally blind man (and oldest man) to ever win the men’s fighting competition at the martial arts “Tournament of Champions” – a multi-state event with martial artists of all ages. And my sensei made sure no one knew I was blind until after the competition was over. I left the tournament with a broken nose, three cracked ribs, a torn rotator cuff, a dislocated knee – and the first place trophy as Tournament Fighting Champion.

I am also the only blind martial artist to ever be awarded a black belt in Shaolin Kenpo Karate. I have since also been awarded a black belt in Taekwondo karate.

Whenever I felt overwhelmed by the challenges in front of me, my youngest daughter would softly remind me, “Daddy, you promised not to quit.” That little reminder was always enough to make me stiffen my backbone and keep moving forward with my life.

Eventually, my art made me so busy, I actually forgot to be angry. One day I simply realized I wasn’t depressed anymore.

I lost my eyesight in just 30 minutes and my self-worth soon followed. I finally had to accept being blind, but once I did, I also accepted the fact that to have a life, I would have to take the risk and reinvent my life.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I learned drawing and painting from my Grandmother and apprenticed with master sculptor Ed Dwight to learn bronze sculpture and with master stone and gem carver Vasily Konovalenko. I also taught myself scrimshaw art and how to restore ivory art work.

Combining my 2D and 3D art experience, I have created my signature paintings on floating layers of monofilament strings and paintings that combine panels of hyperrealism and abstract art in the same painting.

My monofilament paintings are done in acrylic painted on over 1,000 strands of monofilament line anchored side-by-side and 8 layers deep inside a clear acrylic case.

For my abstract linear works, I paint a realistic portrait on a clear acrylic panel that floats over an abstract I paint on a komatex panel. I paint the portrait without shading and it is actually the abstract painting that creates all the shading that the eye perceives in the portrait. Two paintings that combine to create one image.

My paintings float in empty space. Based on the position of the viewer, the art seems to move, change; forcing the mind to impose sense on the influence of space and elements within the painting – continuously challenging the viewer’s interpretation of the subject.

The opaque and semi-transparent materials in my paintings combine with empty space to create a work of art that appears both solid yet weightless – a captured shadow.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being creative?

Overcoming the physical challenge of being blind to create award-winning works of art helps me convince others who are challenged that they, too, can succeed despite any fears they may have.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I was told by doctors and even friends that even though I loved art, I was blind and I could always find something else to love and do with my life, but their good intentions were lost on me.

I had to do art again. To relearn how to do sculpture, I spent 900 hours just creating a small carving. I spent even more time drawing one small portrait after another, and to relearn painting took even more time painting and repainting hundreds of small images.

Once, while creating the carving, I was so frustrated I threw the piece across the room. But I did finally finish the piece and I learned from the struggle.

When I finally began creating art again that I was willing to let the public see, I began to win awards like the Veterans Administration National Gold Medal for Fine Art and many best of show and other awards.

Today, people see my art and the awards but they never witnessed the frustration and the struggle it took to get there.

Contact Info:

• Website: [email protected]
• Instagram: jimstevens7762!
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/artistjimstevens/
• Linkedin: [email protected]
• Twitter: Jim63039483
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AB0x4jVxL_0

Image Credits
Jim Stevens