somehow .” He continued , “ I ’ m a self-taught artist , and at the time I didn ’ t have money to do workshops . I didn ’ t want to wait years to be good at it ; I wanted to get on with it . I spent those [ first ] four years really trying to perfect it . There were many all-nighters trying to figure this stuff out . And it slowly started clicking .”
“ Art can be a dark place , if you ’ re trying to make it and you don ’ t have the LORD ,” Jeremy said sincerely . “ I don ’ t know how people do it .”
He had stumbled across a magazine of wildlife art early on , and was immediately enamored with a painting by the renowned Richard Schmid . “ I fell in love with his work ,” Jeremy enthused , and it gave him the direction and clarity he needed in his own work , “ and it set me off on a mission .”
Jeremy jumped up and quickly found a copy of a book of Schmid ’ s landscape paintings , and thumped it down on the coffee table . Jeremy thumbed through it , stopping on favorite pages , reaping more enjoyment out of his admiration for Richard Schmid ’ s work than of talking about his own career . It was easy to see how Schmid ’ s work would inspire — it was the subject matter of daily life , simple scenes and landscapes , poignant portraits , impressionistic and evocative . He explained how Schmid ’ s book , Everything I Know About Alla Prima , highly influenced his own work and helped him settle into a style of his own . As a self-identified impatient painter who “ doesn ’ t want to sit and spend weeks on a painting ,” this style and method uniquely suits Jeremy ’ s temperament , as the painting is ideally finished at the first attempt , before the paint is fully dry .
Not everyone gets to meet their idols , but in 2003 he and his wife were attending an exhibit of Richard Schmid ’ s work at a museum . While there , Jeremy ’ s wife experienced a sudden health crisis which they learned later was due to Addison ’ s Disease , and a woman stepped in to help them . Jeremy recognized her as Nancy , Richard Schmid ’ s wife , a well-known painter in her own right . Jamie and Nancy hit it off immediately (“ They just fell in love ,” Jeremy laughed ) and thus began a years-long friendship with
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Nancy and Richard . “ Outside of the LORD and my wife , Richard greatly inspired me as an artist in a way that I have no words to express .” He pointed to the portrait of his wife in the gilded frame . “ He painted my wife , that painting right there , and gave it to me as a gift .” And so the stunning portrait hangs wherever he paints .
A few unexpectedly successful art shows early on surprised the fledgling artist and , with his wife as a catalyst and encouragement , gave him the momentum to keep at his work until , finally , in 2004 , he took the leap and went full time as a painter .
With his sights set on Santa Fe , at that time the second leading art market in the entire United States , and in the top ten internationally , Jeremy sent his portfolio to gallery after gallery , and faced the disheartening exercise of having his portfolio returned to him time after time or hearing only silence in response . But in the midst of the disappointments , Jeremy knew God was working and things finally shifted . “ I felt the LORD putting it on me to drive to Santa Fe and take the paintings with me .” It seemed like a crazy idea , but it nagged at him until he was uneasy at the thought of not going . At the time , he and Jamie were living in Townsend , TN , but Jamie leapt at the spontaneous 20-hour drive so they packed up the truck and pointed it west a day later .
The gallery search was unexpectedly discouraging , in contrast to the relentless motivation to make the trip . “ I knew the LORD had sent me out there , but He was testing me ,” Jeremy said . They were down to their last day slated to be in Santa Fe , with only one more art gallery to visit , and optimism was at a low ebb . But the owner no sooner saw Jeremy ’ s portfolio than he wanted to see the originals , an unusual progression in a gallery-hunt . “ It didn ’ t even feel like a minute ,” Jeremy recalled , “ and he said , ‘ Okay , let ’ s sign a contract !’”
“ I wanted a sign from the LORD ,” Jeremy said , regarding that first trip to Santa Fe . “ I don ’ t ask for signs anymore ,” he chuckled . “ When He says it , I just go .”
This turned into a years-long relationship with the gallery , exposing Jeremy to southwest art magazines , truly launching his ca-
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