But his passion was always as an artist.
In 1987, he was accepted into PWS and
later served as its president. More recently
he was accepted into Associated Artists of
Pittsburgh.
“When I was a student in undergraduate
school studying art, I found a passion for
watercolor the first time I held a brush—I
was possessed by the medium,” he says.
“When I produce art, I become a type of
mystic person, yet I am an ordinary person
and love my ordinary life.”
His wife, Vincenne Revilla Beltran,
a Professor of Education at Point Park
University, appreciates her husband’s
dedication to his craft.
“He is always creating something new
and exploring new techniques to express his
ideas and philosophies,” she says. “Whether
he is working in his studio or in our garden,
Victor constantly creates new images with
ideas that seem never-ending. Years ago,
he painted several original oil paintings
while standing on a scaffold above the Bach
Choir of Pittsburgh during a concert, to my
amazement.”
“Everywhere I go, everywhere I am, there
are subjects in the world. A flower, a forest, a
Beltran's painting, “Block the Storm,” won first prize
at the juried competition of the 70th Anniversary
of the Pittsburgh Watercolor Society at the Three
Rivers Arts Festival.
Beltran spent 21 years in the design department of L.D. Astorino, and worked on major projects including
Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC and PNC Park.
cityscape, people...they all impact my work,”
says Beltran. “This is hard to explain because
I live in the moment, and each moment is
new and an opportunity for art. It has been
a long journey to become the artist that I
am now. For example, I have 42 pounds of
sketchbooks, all full of sketchings and art
from my daily life and travels. I show these
sketchbooks periodically when I teach. My
latest sketchbook is full of watercolors based
on the rooms, corners, outdoors and indoors
of Phipps Conservatory.”
Beltran will be conducting workshops and
teaching classes for a variety of organizations,
including Phipps Conservatory this winter.
He is currently working on the Chatham
University watercolor collection and also
accepts other commissions for a wide variety
of residential home portraits, which combines
his skills as an artist and architect.
The Beltrans’ exquisite Zen home garden,
recently featured on the Shaler Great Gardens
Tour, is another project dear to the artist’s
heart.
“Parallel to my love of art is my passion
for gardening,” says Beltran. “It took us 13
years to build our Zen garden, which includes
curved stone walls and stairways, terraces,
decks, patios, an Enzo walking meditation
path and two waterfalls. These two passions,
art and garden, combine to form the basis for
a lot of my creative endeavors.”
Beltran has some words of wisdom to
those who would like to become professional
artists. “First, you need to have passion
for whatever you want to achieve,” he says.
“Second, you need to have patience because
it takes years to develop your skills. Third,
observe professional artists and their work,
read about them and study their art. Fourth,
accept critiques and advice from teachers, buy
books, experiment, make mistakes and learn
from them.”
Even with all of the accolades, Beltran’s
focus is to continue to grow as an artist.
Says Revilla Beltran, “He is tireless in his
love of new adventures when it comes to art.
To us, he is a husband, father and grandfather,
and he makes our lives exciting!”
“We were born into this world to see it and
to listen to it,” says Beltran. “Since that’s the
case, we don’t have to be someone. We have,
each of us has, meaning to our life.” ■
» For more information, contact Victor Beltran at [email protected], or visit his Facebook page at facebook.com/VictorBeltranArt.
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