Last Thursday evening at City Art Works the walls were lined with colorful and detailed paintings of nature and landscapes created by twelve-year-old artist Destiney Robeaux. Being inspired by artwork of her father’s that they found while going through old storage boxes when she was ten, she has since honed her skills to the point where she can create vivid and colorful paintings from her mind’s eye.
“My dad used to paint and draw, and he showed me his art from when he was younger. I guess I just wanted to try and do something different. So I started watching Bob Ross videos, and he was doing nature, so then I started doing that,” said Robeaux.
After learning techniques from the videos, she then went about creating her own pieces.
“I would get out all my paints, lay down, and think of what I wanted to paint. I usually can’t paint unless I get it into my mind. When I get the vision in my mind I have to paint it,” said Robeaux.
Destiney’s father Derek Robeaux spoke of how it felt to have his old artwork be the spark inspiration for his daughter to take up painting.
“We were going through some old boxes I had in storage one day, and she found some artwork I had done in school, so it kind of inspired her to start drawing and painting,” said Derek Robeaux.
“So me and my mom went to Walmart one day and bought her all the painting stuff she wanted. We went home, and she started painting, drawing, and we just kept getting her whatever she needed to evolve.”
“She started around 10 years old, so it’s been 2 years now she’s been doing this. It’s evolved a lot in the past two years. It feels great to give her a little push, to strive for something that I used to like, and maybe it’ll take her even further,” said Derek Robeaux.
While having one world on display for all to see can be daunting, that is especially the case for someone as young as Destiney. However, through the support of family and friends who came out to see her work, she ended up becoming more comfortable and enjoying the evening.
“It’s good. I was really nervous at first, but as I got here I got more comfortable talking with people,” said Destiney Robeaux. “I want to thank my parents and my grandparents, because they’re the ones who keep me going.”