Twenty years after they graduated and parted ways, Forman and Richmond remain close friends, who have established “Art Makes Us,” a mentorship network for aspiring artists of any age. And they’re t…
Even if he didn’t have a word for it, as a toddler, Paul Richmond knew himself as an artist. So did his parents. It was they who identified a mentor for their child in Linda Regula, an artist in their Ohio neighborhood, who typically taught adults. Seeing something in his drawings, Regula took on the 4-year-old and worked with him weekly until he went off to Columbus College of Art and Design. Imagine. In college, Richmond was expressive, outgoing, and full of ideas. Classmate Melissa Forman was quieter, more restrained, reflective. Yet both understood how to paint emotion. She was the overachiever in class. He admired that. They started painting murals together in the community and quickly built it into a business on behalf of schools, art galleries, community venues and private homes. The two commenced from college in 2002, both with a bachelor of fine arts degree. Today, each has established a formidable fine art career. Forman, still living in Ohio, balances her painting with being the art director at American Greetings. Through painting and teaching, Richmond, who has lived on the Monterey Peninsula since 2016, has been devoted to giving a visual voice to pressing issues and to promoting the potential of the next generation of artists in Monterey County and beyond. Twenty years after they graduated and parted ways, Forman and Richmond remain close friends, who have established “Art Makes Us,” a mentorship network for aspiring artists of any age. And they’re teaching, mentoring, and running the business together from more than 2,500 miles apart. Ironically, perhaps, they have the pandemic to thank for this, for the emerging technology, training, and shifts in perspective and practices enabling Forman and Richmond to work with students from all over the world, via Zoom. In fact, they often teach classes together, as if they were in the same room. As if everyone were. While technology is making this possible, it is the late Linda Regula who taught them how to teach. “When Linda passed away in 2020,” said Richmond, “Melissa and I started making plans to keep her legacy alive.
