Not So Kindergarten Crayon Art

You may think that crayons are for very little kids and that you are too cool to be caught with them - But as Herb Williams will tell you the colorful wax sticks are not just drawing tools, but also a medium for carving amazing sculptures!

Herb honed his building skills from working at construction sites every summer from the tender age of twelve all the way through high school. Once out of college, he apprenticed with many artists and worked with all kinds of conventional mediums. However, his dream was to create sculptors from crayons!

To realize it, he moved to Nashville,TN, in 2008 and set up shop under the name of Herb William's Art. It did not take too long for his amazing talent to shine. That same year, he was honored with the Next Star Artist Award, an international competition, based on the artist's potential to succeed in the commercial market. And, they were right - Today Herb's sculptures sell for thousands of dollars - a far cry from the few hundred dollars he made when he first started out.

In fact Herb's sculptures have become so famous that his 4X4 foot sculpture of President Obama was displayed at the Manifest Hope Exhibition in Washington D.C. during the inaugural celebrations.

Following the ceremony, the 150lbs masterpiece made from 50,000 crayons and featuring 20 different colors, was promptly returned to its owner - a local collector who had paid $25,000 USD for the piece.

To make these wonderful creations Herb first crafts a fiberglass, metal or clay mold - After that he cuts his crayons to the right size with nail cutters or very sharp guillotines. Then, using secret bonding material, he painstakingly sticks the crayons to the mold one at a time - Interestingly enough, he does not attach the wax but the paper that covers the crayons to the mold.

Herb buys so many crayons every year, that he is the only individual dealer in the world who buys directly from crayon manufacturer, Crayola. Pretty cool!

sources: herbwilliamsart.com, uncoached.com,fadedtribune.com