Paul Robertson's  BIO

   Paul Robertson Biography

    Artist Paul Robertson was born and raised in Perry, Michigan near Lansing the state capital. He was a star athlete in high school, with a baseball scholarship from Duke University and scouting interest from the L.A. Dodgers waiting in the wings. While a knee injury crumbled those aspirations, it did not deter young Robertson from pursuing his dreams. Heading out west to California he shifted his athletic focus by, first, trying his hand at the pro volleyball circuit. He played in major events sponsored by Jose Cuervo and won big tournaments for AVP America Midwest and East Coast Leagues at the relatively advanced age of 39. However, Robertson really shone, ultimately, when he became a professional surfer.

​

    “I am an Aquarian and have always been a water person,” says Robertson. “My parents had property in northern Michigan on Houghton Lake. I began surfing on the Great Lakes when I was very young.” So, altering his athletic vision and staying true to himself, surfing became his passion and he earnestly excelled at it. So much so, in fact, that, in the early ‘80s, surf and clothing manufacturer Billabong sponsored him in his surfing travels around the world. His prodigious pursuit of the waves took him to many exotic lands, including Brazil, Hawaii, Fiji, Bali, Costa Rica and Australia.

​

    “When I would travel around to these exotic places I started taking a camera with me,” explains Robertson. “I began seeing how beautiful the world was. I started paying attention to color. It was cool to see how in a lot of Central American and South American countries the more colors you wore meant you were beautiful.” Robertson would take photos and print them up professionally. People saw his work and bought his photographic prints. “When I quit surfing I got more into photography but pursued black and white,” he continues. “I always liked Ansel Adams and liked how he would make you see color within black and white. That’s what I wanted to do. But when the I Phones started coming in that really put a damper on my photography sales. Around 2010-2011 I started messing around with computer programs and graphic design.” The first piece that he created on computer was called “Liquid Inspiration” and depicts a vibrant and vivid surfing scene. From there the intrepid artist found his calling and people began responding favorably to this new medium of artistic expression.

    But we would be remiss in telling the Paul Robertson story if we did not briefly touch on the wealth of adversity he had to overcome to get where he is today. He has endured over 30 surgeries in his life for knee and shoulder issues as well as a brain injury. “I was told when I fell down some stairs in 2004 that doctors didn’t think I would make it. And, if I did, I wouldn’t be able to walk or talk,” says the artist about the closed head injury. “But I got up in three days and walked and talked! Since the injury it’s really strange, but I see colors a lot more vividly now. When I work on a piece I have colors pop in my mind that I wouldn’t even think of before the accident. My pieces come out pretty interesting.”

 

Art Moments: Art Prize Grand Rapids MI. 2014-2015, Best New Artist Wyandotte Art Fair 2019, Lac Ste. Claire Art Fair Special award 2017-18