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Abstract painter Todd Crockett actually began his art career as a gallery owner. However, despite the fantastic art that came into his exhibit space, he always felt that there was a niche that needed filling. “I found myself continually honing my aesthetic and thinking, ‘here’s what I would do,’” he says. “So finally, that’s what I did.”

The work that resulted from this leap of faith has been described over the years as spiritual and moving, abstract and nebulous, with wild splashes of color and juxtapositions of light and dark. From the moment he turns on classical music and lets it begin to inspire his direction, Crockett’s creativity is evident in every painting. “I want to draw viewers’ attention to the creative process,” he says, “and more specifically, the creation of the earth and the heavens by the Creator of all things.”

Travel is also an important inspiration for Crockett, who spent a month in Kenya and Tanzania in south Africa last year, and is proud to say he’s visited every continent except Antarctica. Giving back to the community through various charities and organizations has been a hallmark of Crockett’s career, donating art and equipment to organizations like the ARC of Arkansas, Youth Home’s Eggshibition, Hospice Home Care Candlelighters and the American Heart Association’s Central Arkansas Heart Ball to name a few.

Artistic expression comes naturally to Crockett, whose parents, Barbara and Davy Crockett, always encouraged their five children’s talents. Barbara always had a project going herself, whether it was re-creating an outfit out of the pages of a magazine or painting family crests. In fact, all Crockett’s siblings’ careers are artistic in nature. He describes them as “a computer animator/art director who plays guitar, drums and keyboard; an interior designer/space planner with two artistic children; a renovator/commercial furniture and textiles sales person; and a graphic designer/art director/portraitist.”

Family is even more important to Crockett at this time, because he is suffering from a terminal illness that doctors thought would claim his life this summer. Though he’s unable to paint, he has been able to stay in his home at Eastside Lofts, where he’s surrounded by his work and pieces by other artists he’s collected, thanks to the help of Hospice Home Care and his family and friends. “Those who know Todd are familiar with his acerbic wit and quick laugh,” his sister Jennifer Stephens says. “He is an intensely loyal friend and an entertaining uncle.”

Crockett’s past works continue to inspire many, and they can be seen at Elements of Design in Little Rock and RedSky Gallery in Charlotte, North Carolina. To see an online gallery of his work, log on to www.toddcrockett.blogspot.com, where more work will be posted as images from private collections are added, and comments are always welcome.