In my last year of High School (2004) my art teacher asked us to pic two paintings of our favorite artist and do an exact copy of them in free hand. I chose Edward Hopper as my all time favorite artist since his paintings speak to me on such a spiritual level, and because i can relate to his theme's of personal isolation and the isolationist dislocation from reality that his later paintings evolved into. As someone who struggles with social anxiety his paintings spoke to me greatly as to how isolated people can be from each other even if they inhabit the same room or area, since most of his paintinga are devoid of humans, and even when two human beings inhabit the same space in one of his paintings (which is very rare) they never interact with each other or acknowledge each others existence. I never really drew or especially painted anything before 2004 and hadnt really even tried too. So my art teacher blew my mind when she asked me if it was alright to submit my two paintings to an art exhibit at the Boston Public Library's main branch in Copley Square (Where the latest Islamic terroist bombings occured) and won second place. I havent really painted or drawn since then because of how hectic and demanding my life has gotten, but i am so proud of the fact that i was included as an artist and wish that i had more of a chance to develop my talents. I hope you like them as much as i do :)