CityView Magazine

32 | November/December 2015 art A rtist omas Ard, known to many as 'TomTom,' brings joy to many peo- ple's lives through his paintings. Happy, lighthearted and figurative are three words to describe his style. Hailing from Lumberton, this artist has a happy-go-lucky attitude towards his creative process. e ultimate goal of his art is to make the viewer smile. Ard explained, "You never know how a smile can change someone's day." When asked what kind of art he creates, Ard enthusiastically exclaimed, "at's a broad subject. My answer to that would probably be LIFE! e art of living." Wheth- er it's painting with watercolors or acrylics, designing or styling a room… those are just a small piece of Ard's artistic endeavors. is artist's exuberance lives not only through his art, but also through his personality. His upbeat attitude will constantly have you smiling, no matter if it is a special moment he is helping prepare or a quick conversation on the phone. His art does not stop at paintings and design, considering he has a wide back- ground of creativity. Ard explained, "I consider myself to be a much more complex artist than just [a painter]. For some reason I have this innate desire to create in every aspect of life. Whether it's setting the perfect table, entertaining, conversation, styling a friend, caring for someone or in the kitchen cooking... ese are all forms of art I like to create." Ard's signature style can be explained as impressionistic and whimsical. His aes- thetic is present in every piece he creates. "A positively happy STYLE," he said. A man full of passion and imaginative ideas, Ard creates with so much soul and heart. "Every time I sell an original it's like selling a piece of my heart." A labor of love, some may call it, but creating doesn't seem like work to Ard, it's more of a second nature. Although he loves to get lost in a creative sublime, his crea- tions also reflect a carefree nature unrestrained by the contemporary rules of art. Ard declared, "I love portraying how beautiful, witty and funny life can be. I think my art resonates so well with a lot of people, particularly southerners, because of the values and humor I like portray in my art." Ard is also a talented calligrapher and his wide variety of written content embel- lishes his sketches and watercolors perfectly. "Calligraphy is one of those gis that just happened one day. I taught myself and have never taken a class. at's probably why it has such a quirky style. It's fun and free flowing like me," he explained. BY TAYLOR AUBE Stay Connected with Public Power. Reliable. Responsive. Local. Low Rates. faypwc.com As a public power provider, PWC is community owned and locally operated. That helps you "stay connected" thanks to benefits like the fastest possible response times, even during storms or other emergencies, and superior reliability. (PWC is one of only three utilities nationwide to earn the American Public Power Association's highest level Reliability Award three consecutive times.) "Public power" means we operate solely for our customers, not shareholder profit, and our residential electric rates are among the lowest in the state. It also means we have stronger connections with our community – keeping revenues right here and providing more jobs for local residents. PWC helps you stay connected with excellent communications and customer service. Our website is a great resource for customers. It includes information on PWC incentive programs that reward customers with bill credits for taking measures to conserve energy and water. These programs help protect our resources and enable customers to save on their utility bills for years to come. Connect to PWC through our Online Account Manager to set up service, check usage and much more. Follow us on Pinterest and Facebook.

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