H. Benjamin Diaz

I started drawing around age five or six. In the fourth grade one of my teachers noticed my drawings and asked me to do a Thanksgiving themed drawing on one of the chalkboards. By the time I graduated from elementary school I was doing all the holiday themed art on 8 or 9 home classroom chalkboards. At age seven my neighbor, who owned a ceramic shop, taught me how to make the molds, to pour, and to prepare and paint the ceramic pieces. As I got a little older external pressure forced me to drift away from artistic endeavors. However, on my retirement, after a twenty-year career in the Air Force and thirty-five years managing technical business operations for large and small corporations, I finally felt that I could give in to my pent-up creative side.

I have always been able to draw accurately. So, I set out to learn the techniques of the various media by reading art publications, but mostly trial and error and experimentation. Watercolor was the first medium I decided to learn as I had been told that it is the most difficult to master. As I got more into it, I found dealing with its unpredictability and its versatility to be its two most irresistible characteristics. I have developed my own technique that allows me to use watercolors to create what I hope is a uniquely personal style.

Passionate artists, including myself, can be extremely boring if we are allowed to hijack a conversation in any social setting. So, I take classes to introduce my new pieces (I never make changes to my completed pieces no matter what the instructor or other students have to say about it) and, mostly, for the opportunity to speak with other artists about art

My subject interests vary widely from still life to human/animal portraiture. I am strongly attracted to higher difficulty pieces that involve unusual lighting effects. If I can tell a story with my art, it is even better.

Pastel, Oil Pastel, Charcoal, Ink, Water Based Brush Sets, Colored Pencil, Acrylics, and Mixed Media are other mediums that I enjoy working with.

I have shown my artwork at numerous locations in Southern California including the Ontario Airport Terminal, the San Dimas Walker House 2nd Story Gallery, the Ontario Annual Art Festival, the Creative Minds Art Gallery in Pomona and the Pomona Valley Art Association’s Gallery SOHO in Claremont.

Several local publications including the Inland Empire Magazine, Arts for Poetry Magazine, and newspapers have published articles and images of my art. Approximately 50% of the art pieces that I have entered in art competitions have received top honors.