My Art Education: To some extent I'm a self-taught artist, although at one time or another I've enrolled in a number of evening art classes. First in Manhattan for two years at the Art Student"s League, then in Los Angeles at UCLA Extension, and later still at Pierce College in the San Fernando Valley. Actually I've been painting since childhood, but until I chose early retirement in 1991, it was all nothing more than a serious hobby. Then it became a full-time avocation, and soon I began showing and selling my work at Outdoor Art Festivals, and in several Los Angeles and Palm Springs art galleries.
Sort Of A Brief Biography: I was born in Mishawaka, Indiana, but grew up in Chicago. I've spent most of my life in Advertising, Public Relations, and Marketing. In 1967 I became Vice President and Marketing Director for a local independant bank. In 1971 I left the bank, and began selling commercial real estate investments as an independent broker. In 1977 I got lucky and sold a property where my commission was large enough to fulfill a lifetime dream to open my own art gallery, Discovery Galleries at ABC Entertainment Center in Century City . Soon I was also publishing and distributing art posters. In 1982 I moved my business to Santa Monica, and later opened a Sergio Bustamente Sculpture Gallery on Main Street in Santa Monica
After leaving the business world to retire in 1991, boredom with retirement caused me to return to creating my own art. I started out by doing abstract monoprints. Then I began painting traditional landscapes, gradually moved into the Southwestern genre. Later, as the market for Southwestern Art became overcrowded, I started painting more contemporary abstract work-- some of it non-objective, and some of it figurative.
In 1993 my life-long urge to try new things (which is probably caused by a pathologically low threshold of boredom) led me to experiment with three-dimensional wall sculptures. Today they represent an important part of my creative life. The balance is made up of abstract acrylic paintings, and digitally enhanced photography.
