My favorite artist, Richard Barlett, spends quiet time sketching people he doesn’t know. On the bus, at a coffee shop, outside, inside, he draws. With oil pastels or a black fountain pen, he listens with his eyes and lets his hand follow his heart.

A graduate of the New York Academy of Art, Richard is a steady presence in O‘ahu’s art community—coordinating events, showing work, and encouraging others to create. His practice keeps him close to people, close to life.

As Spanish writer George Santayana observed, “An artist is a dreamer consenting to dream of the actual world.”

Richard’s work finds magic in the ordinary and beauty in simplicity. Strangers become familiar, almost-friends. He is a quiet joy to watch as he gets lost in the process of creation—celebrating life and the people he meets with his heart and hands.

As Leonardo da Vinci said, “Where the spirit does not work with the hand there is no art.” Through the years I have watched Richard grow in spirit and talent. For his Eagle Scout project, he drew a whale mural at the Kaneohe District Park Recreation Center. Later, as an art student at the University of Hawaii, he created a massive portrait of Tom Cruise from movie stubs—inspired by the work of Chuck Close.

Explore Richard’s earlier pieces in the Primalmarks archive to see his evolution over time, then follow his latest work on Instagram: @richardbarlett.