Doing What You Love

I interviewed a medical doctor today that's never practiced. It seems Don Stewart had taken a drawing class while in pre-med and he fell in love -- with drawing.

He had finished med school and was training as a surgeon when he realized he was in the wrong profession. In the middle of his shift, he walked out. When one of the other doctors told him his shift was not over, he told them "it is for me, because I don't work here anymore" and he walked away.

When he told his dad that he'd walked away, the elder Stewart was not happy, to say the least. 

But Don had financed his training through college loans, and he told his father he really didn't have a voice in the decision.

That was 25 years ago, and Stewart has never looked back. It took him 15 years of drawing to pay off his student loans, but he said that drawing made him happy and that day in the operating room, he knew that medicine never would.

His art is not considered art in the "art" community because he draws with a ballpoint pen. 

In this video Don walks you through his drawing of a golf bag. His art is a compilation of visual puns.  He does a much better job of explaining than I ever could.

He also did a piece that's called "Uncommon Valor" and from a distance it looks like a pen and ink sketch of the famous picture taken at Iwo Jima near the end of WWII. But in fact, the drawing is a complete history of the Marine Corps. 

He sells limited edition prints of this work and donates 1/2 the profits to the Marine's Wounded Warrior Regiment. 

I could have stayed and talked to Don Stewart all day. He is a fascinating individual. He is someone who can look you in the eye and tell you that he's doing what he loves.

You can learn more about Don Stewart at:
DSArt.com