artist Skip Shelton - Knowitall.org

Two Civil War murals by Shelton (above and Page 31) are at the home of Tom Sawyer on Lake Greenwood.
hours—sometimes minutes. He captures the famous
glint in Johnny Carson’s eye as adeptly as
the moonrise over a Palmetto tree. What he sees, he
paints. It’s as natural and easy to him as breathing.
When he teaches, he makes his ability seem attainable
by anyone.
Debbie Kinard, owner of Picture This, a frame
shop in Laurens, helped Shelton with a downtown
mural. He can turn anyone into a painter, she believes.
“He would do the drawing and we would fill
in. We had so much fun doing it. It’s amazing—you
learn how to do it. He’s such a good teacher.”
Shelton is the father of two and grandfather
of four. With his son, golf trick shot expert Buddy
Shelton, he shares a love of flying and a day on the
greens. All who know him envy his health and resilience.
Shelton survived cancer several years ago, a
fact he shrugs off with little fanfare.
Though he paints incessantly, Shelton does
not contemplate the vast reach of his work. For
him, each piece is personal. He develops an Easter
book for Fountain Inn Presbyterian Church each
year and paints a steady stream of commissioned
works—some so large he has to work atop a hydraulic
lift. He created watercolors of historic sites in
Laurens for the town’s promotional brochures and
left images of pin-up girls all over World War II Europe.
Each work has been different, but each fills
Shelton with the joy he sees in those who delight in
his talent.
“Monday, I might like doing a picture of Don
Knotts,” Shelton said. “It might just be in my heart
that I want to do that. Or I might want to do the 18th
hole at Stoney Point. My mood will change and I’m
sure glad.”
No matter what the subject, Shelton feels blessed
to be able to paint. “You can’t believe how much fun I
have doing all this stuff. It’s not the money. You get
paid for it, but that’s not the satisfaction. On Christmas,
I’m thinking of all the people who are going to
open a present and it’s going to be a portrait of their
dog or a painting of their mama’s house. Christmas
to me is exciting, knowing I’ve got at least a hundred
people who are going to open a present I did.”
If Shelton has his way, there will be many more
Christmases to come. “I’ve had a good life,” he said.
“And I’m still having it.” ❖
Simpsonville writer Chris Worthy reported on the
Happy Berry Farm in Six Mile in the summer Sandlapper.
Patrick Wright is a photographer for Clemson
University.
Autumn 2006 33