I was in one of my Facebook groups, when a friend posted about this guy who paints Disney characters and posted his Facebook page in the group. I instantly went over and checked out his page. The paintings were all so amazing, and the best part about all of this is that his paintings are really affordable. I have been able to buy five of his paintings and I can’t wait to add more to my collection. Of course, I will most likely run out of wall space, but I don’t mind. And my husband loves the paintings so much too that he is okay when I buy them.
He has quite a few different sized canvases he paints on, which is great for hanging up on your wall, and his name is Steve Huntsman. Here is a bit more about him, his paintings, and what he did before and what he will do after the pandemic.
1. What inspired you to paint Disney characters?
I’ve always been a huge Disney fan, so I’ve grown up drawing Disney characters for as long as I can remember.
2. Do you paint other characters besides Disney?
Yes, I paint whatever I want, I’ve done, Pokemon, Hanna-Barbera, Looney Tunes, etc. I also love doing abstract art for home and office decor.
3. Who has been your favorite character or characters to paint?
Mickey will always be my fave, and I do lots of that little guy. I love all the fab 6, but I also love when I get to do a Stitch or Sally from Nightmare Before Christmas. She’s a lot of fun to do. I enjoy when I get to do an obscure character, someone who doesn’t usually get a lot of hype or spotlight.
4. How long have you been painting? Are you self taught or did you take art classes?
I’m pretty much self taught. I took art classes in High School, but that’s about the extent of my training. I tend to do my own thing. I don’t necessarily adhere to the rules of traditional painting. I find that I let the brush and my imagination dictate what I’m going to do.
5. What do you enjoy doing other than painting?
I really enjoy design. I’ve been involved in theater since I was a young teen starting out as a performer. In my adult years I naturally picked up costume, set and prop design as well as directing and producing. Designing costumes and sets for the stage is a huge passion for me. I love being able to see them start out as an idea, then go from a sketch to an actual realized 3 dimensional piece of art. I love painting sets. It’s definitely therapeutic, and when there’s not a huge time constraint, it relaxes me and puts me in a good mind space.
6. Did you do paintings before the pandemic hit?
Yes, I’ve been painting since 2013
7. What did you do before the pandemic hit?
My wife and I own and operate Huntsman Entertainment and Huntsman Creative. Through Huntsman Entertainment we produce, design, and direct musicals for the stage. With Huntsman Creative, we design and build projects/ provide entertainment for events for corporate entertainment, and music festivals across the country.
8. How long have you been in the theater business?
We’ve owned and operated Huntsman Entertainment since 2013, but have worked with other theater companies since we were married in 1999.
9. What was your favorite show that you worked on for the theater?
It’s like asking me to pick my favorite child and to that I say, Ryder, my boy, He’s definitely my favorite. Lol. I jest, but seriously, I find it hard to pick favorites, because they all have such personal meaning to me and represent so much hard work, sacrifice, creative imagination and sometimes ingenuity to figure out how to present something amazing that looks like a million bucks on a limited budget. Also the people, cast, creative and crew on each show have so much personal impact on the experience that imprint wonderful memories in my mind creating a fondness for the project. Some of my favorite shows we’ve produced are Once on This Island (2009), All Shook Up (2010) Beauty and the Beast (2016) and Mamma Mia (2019).
10. Did you meet your wife while working in the theater?
Sure did. We were both cast in a production of Fiddler on the Roof. She was Hodel, one of Tevya’s daughters, and I was Mendel, the Rabbi’s son. The actor playing Perchik (Hodel’s love interest) had to drop the show, and I was asked to fill his role. Playing opposite of each other, we started to get to know each other and hung out after rehearsal. Our first kiss was a stage kiss in rehearsal. It’s funny, we weren’t even supposed to kiss, but the actor playing Tevya missed his entrance cue and I saw it as an “opportunity” to improvise. We started dating and after only a couple weeks of actual dating, I knew I was going to marry her, so since my character proposes to her character as part of the show, I decided to do it for real onstage closing night. I mean, how could she say no? It was part of the script!
11. Did your wife get you into theater or did you get her into theater?
We both did theater before we met.
12. Once the pandemic is finally over, will you go back into theater?
Yes. Theater across the country has been decimated. The professional and amateur theater community from small community theaters to regional tours and Broadway have been predominantly shut down since March 12th. Our primary purpose is to bring people together to entertain. It’s been a huge hit for our industry. We personally were 2 weeks from opening a production of Beauty and the Beast when we were shut down and cancelled. It was to be our last production in a venue that was being torn down and rebuilt as a Hockey arena for a new minor league team in Vegas, so it was extremely devastating to our cast and crew. So much hard work. Instead of moving into the theater, we moved the whole show into storage. It was very sad. So when this is all over, we will be starting from scratch.
13. Will you continue to do your amazing paintings after the pandemic as well or just go back to theater?
Of course.
14. If someone would like to contact you for a painting, how should they contact you?
I do most everything on Facebook right now, so Find Steve Huntsman’s Character Art on Facebook, “Like” my page, and drop me a message. I can also be reached by email stevescharacterart@gmail.com
15. Do you have a website? And what is the link to your website?
Not currently.
I really enjoyed getting to know Steve more through this interview and had a great chuckle at a few of his answers. He definitely has a great sense of humor. I also enjoy our chats through Facebook Messenger when we either talk about painting or just chat about life. He and his wife are such talented people, definitely the kind of people who you would love to have as friends. I really hope that they can get back to their theater soon and make magic in not just their paintings and their sewing, but also their plays.
And go check out Steve’s Facebook page to see a lot more of his amazing paintings and even to contact him to get your hands on your own. Make sure that you message him about the sizes and the prices. Like I said, his prices are super reasonable and his talent, well I hope that the paintings he has done for me and that I have shown you have proven his talent to you.
Thank you, Steve, for doing this Interview with me, I really enjoyed learning more about you, your theater, and about your life. I hope one day I can bring my family to meet yours and to see a play by you and your wife, Sandra. That would really make my day.
