We’re looking forward to introducing you to Steve Alpert. Check out our conversation below.
Good morning Steve, it’s such a great way to kick off the day – I think our readers will love hearing your stories, experiences and about how you think about life and work. Let’s jump right in? What do the first 90 minutes of your day look like?
Up early, usually 5:30. The world is dark and quiet, No distractions. Bathroom stuff and shower. Then 5-7 minutes of Tai Chi swinging exercises. Then breakfast, “fully loaded” miso soup with vegetables and tofu. I make, a few times a week which I either freeze or fridge; Two cups of sencha or hojicha green tea from Japan. Sometimes Greek yogurt and almond and walnuts and honey.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am an artist, a painter in oil paint. I make landscapes, still life, abstract, and portraits. Have spent last 23 years devoted to making paintings that honor the name and women in uniform who serve in the US Armed Forces. My large prints raises large sums of money for non -profit organizations that benefit veterans and their families. Right now I am working on creating a series of paintings from a recent trip to Japan. I also write, just completing a book about the last 23 years making the military paintings, and the experiences that accompanied those paintings. Some of those paintings are in National museums and the Pentagon.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
My wife saw me clearly certainly. By then I was 41. Before that I doubt anyone really saw me clearly except for my dogs.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
Yes. In my mid-30’s. I worked in television production as a producer/write/director. A large project had been offered to me, two documentaries that I would produce and direct, with heavy financial backing. I allowed myself to be strung along believing it was going to happen, and then suddenly it was canceled. I came down with chicken pox, and very sick for a month in the dead of winter. I could barely find work for the next year and a half. I was down at my very lonely lowest. I needed to do something. I took up yoga and meditation which did save me. Almost dead broke and down to my last phone call to someone I knew who might give me work. He was an old friend and for some reason saved him for last, I guess I felt like I would be begging. He did have work for me and that was the beginning of a new part of life. As my grandmother would say, “This Too Shall Pass.” It did. I made a promise to God that I would dedicate myself to doing God’s work.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What do you believe is true but cannot prove?
I believe we are all connected. I believe that there is life after death of this body and that I have had multiple past lives, and will have more. At 74, I know my runway may not be very long and I feel a sense of a clock ticking. I have had cancer and understand that there is a frame around my life and that one day this shall end. At the same time, I live like I am gong to live forever knowing that I am not. I hold my friends and loved ones close, I value and put energy into those relationships and I let go of the rest. People who don’t call me after I have called them twice…I have begun to let them go. Time is the treasure of life, I work hard to use it wisely. There are so many paintings I want to make…
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
I hope to be remembered as a person who lived a full life. An artist once said to me after looking at my paintings, she said,”Your painting make me want to eat life.” I will never forget that. I want to be remembered as a loving husband and father and grandfather. I want to be remembered as an accomplished artist. And an accomplished athlete. And someone who took risks to pursue his passions of being with family, making art, traveling the world, loving animals.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://stevealpertart.com
- Instagram: steve alpert
- Linkedin: steve alpert
Image Credits
Photography by Gary Mamay
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