By Eli Parker
When it comes to the arts , Drue Winsett is a man of many talents , mastering both painting and music .
In recent years , however , he ’ s been most reputable for his oil paintings – portraits and action shots that splendidly capture the reality of their subjects . Some moments that he especially feels drawn to come from renowned activities like basketball , ballet , and horse-racing .
A big inspiration for Winsett ’ s passion in painting comes from his family . When he was younger , his mother , being a painter herself that specialized in landscapes , not only “ inspired ” him to pick up the craft , but he found himself becoming “ obsessed with it .” He ’ s gone as far as to pay his own passion forward by dedicating several pieces to his grandchildren .
While he has wielded the brush since all the way back to his thirties , it wasn ’ t until last year when he finally started showcasing his work to the public . That was when he decided to take up residence in the Cooper Community Arts Center in Downtown Somerset , where he still resides to this day .
Deb Stringer , the building ’ s head director , claims he ’ s “ one of the greatest ” self-taught artists she knows and remembers how humbled and impressive he was when he first asked her about moving in .
“ He took his phone out and he showed me some of his pieces ,” she recalls , “ and the first one I saw , my jaw dropped . I was like , ‘ Yes , you definitely qualify . Get on in here !’”
On top of allowing him to share his artwork with the community through exhibits and receptions , the arts center has provided Winsett with an environment where he feels most comfortable creating his pieces .
“ When I ’ m home , I always think that I should be doing something and I can ’ t put my full attention to it ,” he states , “ but here it ’ s just me and other artists , which really helps .”
For him , being able to concentrate is much needed as his process for each painting is an extensive one . To create just a 24 ’ by 36 ’ fully painted canvas , it takes him an estimated two weeks . And during this time , he goes from creating a layout on Adobe Illustrator to transferring it to the canvas where he paints it by sections until finally touching up the overall piece , bringing
August 2023 SEKY - Life in Southeast Kentucky • 37