Man of Many Faces – Artist, Rob Hibbitts
As a young boy, Rob Hibbitts knew he wanted to become an artist. He loved to draw and would even draw pictures on his parent’s furniture. As he grew up, he would sneak issues of MAD Magazine into the house, study and then imitate the artwork of renown MAD caricaturist Mort Drucker. Further artistic influence came from his college art professor, George Moldovan. Of Moldovan Hibbitts states, “He taught me many things, but mostly, he taught me to always be humble regarding my work.”
Hibbitts style of art is realism, and his preferred subject matters are nature and portraits (of people and animals). He is drawn particularly to the portraits of people from the Appalachian Mountains–as he puts it, “There’s always a story in their eyes.” Capturing the spirit in any portrait begins with the expression of the subjects’ eyes, whether it is a person or an animal.
Hibbitts uses acrylics and oils, but more often creates his illustrations in pencil. Pencils are extremely versatile artistic tools. Much pencil artwork is done in charcoal or graphite providing a monochrome or black and white illustrative outcome. Pencils can create hard sharp lines with firm pressure and multiple levels of shading with varying amounts of pressure. Some techniques include smudging with the fingertip, cross-hatching and using the edges of the pencil to create additional depth perspective affects. Hibbitts’ style encompasses many of these techniques to capture the subject’s expression, essence and emotion which is visually enhanced by the portrayal done as a monochromatic illustration. The use of black and white gives the viewer a greater sense of light and shadow creating form, stripping down the subject matter to its raw shapes while creating drama and complexities that focus the viewer’s attention on each area and line within the form.
{Contributed photo}
There is a process to Hibbitts work that includes a detailed study of the subject, doing sketches, and then when approaching the illustration, he turns on some music, breaths deeply, and takes pencil (or whatever art tool he has chosen for the work) in hand. Making time to create art is sometimes a challenge that depends on his workload and how his clients are scheduled. He typically works on multiple pieces, giving each a time expanse of forty-five minutes per sitting.
When not creating artwork, Hibbitts enjoys getting away to the Appalachian Mountains. This, as he says, “… gives me a chance to refocus and have some time not to think, time to just breath.” He feels the most difficult barrier of working as an artist is explaining to people the pricing difference for an original artwork versus a print. Each of these resulting art forms has a different corresponding value–both valuable, just for different reasons.
Hibbitts has nurtured his talent through networking with several artists in the area and out of state–meeting some of these directly through social media. He has developed his art career by working festivals, teaching art classes and posting his work on social media (@TAC-Designs). He measures his generosity and success in knowing he and his work have made a positive impression on someone. Hibbitts puts it best, “It’s not about the money. It’s about the smile. It’s about the satisfaction. Just knowing that my artwork has made a difference in someone’s life.” His biggest pleasure is meeting people and speaking with them face-to-face—understandable given his preferred choice of subject matter.
Rob Hibbitts can also be reached by email: rdhibbitts62@gmail.com
