SARASOTA (WSNN) – One man, one van, one brush, one year. A Sarasota artist embarks on a colorful journey across the United States to connect with people the way it was before COVID.
“You can still have fun and connect with people despite everything that’s going on,” artist, Drew DeVine said.”I love people, I care about people, I want to connect with people, everybody, all the time. And the only way to do that is to be out in the world.”
After a Sarasota steak and seafood house furloughed 36-year-old Drew DeVine in Spring, he began his journey, ‘Painting My Way Across the USA,’ with a paintbrush and a van in early June.
“It has everything; toilet, shower, fridge, I put solar panels on top,” DeVine said.
To learn and connect with artists. So far, he’s painted in 17 states and connected with 10 artists. His message?
“The world is paralyzing right now, but literally once you step through that, that’s the biggest thing, just start, do, go,” DeVine said.
DeVine is coloring the lives of many.
“He taught me how not to slow down, how to keep working and when an opportunity presents itself, to go after it,” aspiring author, Monica Chrzan or ‘MC Harold,’ said.
DeVine met MC Harold in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. He created the artwork for her short story series titled, “I Am Black Mamba,” focused on race and gender relations.
“He interpreted what I was feeling in a way that I felt might resonate with other people,” MC Harold said.
The Artful Giraffe Gallery in Sarasota is helping him make it financially possible by hosting a physical space for his art and printing his online work.
“Through his travels, he’s meeting all kinds of new people, he’s making waves, so a central location is one of the key things we provide for him,” Artful Giraffe co-owner Tess Camban said.
“We’re one of his biggest fans, so we’re going to do what we can to be there to support him,” Artful Giraffe co-owner Timothy Craig said.
17 states down, 33 left to go. He doesn’t have an end date in mind because DeVine says it’s really about getting the most out of his journey, learning as much as he can. So, there’s no timeline.
You can help DeVine spread art and kindness across the states and filling up his gas tanks, here.