Meet Artist Leslie Lockhart, Huntsville's Most Promising Off-the-Porch Painter

Huntsville Artist @leslielockhartfineart 

Favorite quote: This one feels timeless and always appropriate: "Do the best you can until you know better, then when you know better, do better.” Maya Angelou

Favorite childhood memory: My mother had Parkinsons and some other health issues that kept her close to home so she made sure it was filled with food and fun things to do. My parents put in a pool for our family and friends and she even had extra deep shelves installed when they built the “barn” near the house. She envisioned they could be used like bunks for spend the night parties. We planned the first (and last) party for days…lanterns, camp fire, smores- it was going to be wonderful. It was freezing cold and the “bunks" were super uncomfortable. We all came pouring back in the house but the memory of that and all the times with my family and friends in the summers around the pool are in my memory highlight reel.

What do you like most about Alabama: Alabama is beautiful. The mountains, state parks, lakes, rivers, beaches.

What do you love about the South: I love the people and how kind southerners are. I also love charming southern towns with beautiful old neighborhoods and southern gardens. You cannot have too many boxwoods or hydrangeas….or lenten roses.

Favorite place in Alabama: I love visiting Fairhope and the bay. It is such a magical place.

Favorite place in the South: Highlands, NC

Favorite book by a southern author: I still remember how I felt reading The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy and The Last Juror by John Grisham. I just didn’t want them to end. I think I love books about dysfunctional southern families. Oh, and Jen Hatmaker’s Of Mess and Moxie is wonderful- especially recommend it for young couples just starting out.

Your Mentor: I don’t think I have ever had one true mentor but there are definitely many people in my life, young and old that shape who I want to be.

What would you tell your 20yr old self: I would warn myself that life is a roller coaster of really hard days and really incredible days with most somewhere in between. Focus on the present, the people around you and worry less.