Sapulpa resident John Olivas’ journey to becoming an artist is nothing less than miraculous.
In 2014, Olivas suffered a debilitating stroke while working as a firefighter. Olivas and his wife then moved from Lemoore, California to Oklahoma in January of 2015 John suffered a debilitating stroke. Unable to walk, and barely able to speak or eat, John’s limited mobility cost him his connection to the outside world. “The only access to the world was Facebook,” he said. “That gave me the freedom that I had lost. I couldn’t go anywhere on my own,” said Olivas. Eventually, he learned how to walk again but is still paralyzed on his right side.
Olivas met Tulsan Sherry Watson who was a member of a stroke survivors group who met at the Center For Individuals With Physical Challenges. Ms. Watson invited Olivas to attend a meeting,” I went there to see what it was all about.” A staff member gave John a tour of the center. “I was so impressed,” he said of the visit. “Then she came to the art room and introduced me to Sally Ramirez, at the time she was the art instructor. She taught adaptive art skills,” John said the art instructor taught art to people with a variety of physical challenges. “She taught in the same class, all these different people at the same time, how to draw, and how to paint. I told her, ‘I can’t paint, I was a fireman, I put out fires, I did not paint, I did not draw.’”
Olivas said that he did draw maps at one point in his life, however, the foray into art would chart new territory.
John wound up joining the center and enrolling in the art classes with some reservations because he could only use his left hand and he was right-handed. “I went into the art room on the first day, she sat me down, gave me a pencil, and said, ‘draw a circle.’” John laughingly remarked, “Well, the first one was like a kindergartener, but I developed my motor skills on my left hand and learned how to use it, I never used it before for anything like that. I drew stuff, and I was pretty good at it. From there I learned how to paint. I was very attracted to abstract because it didn’t take any particular skill, just “spottin’” on canvas. I took to it, I got better and better and better at it.
Olivas said he worked with his teacher for approximately three years until she resigned and began teaching art at a school. He now had the skills he needed to be a successful artist. His painting won first place in the Abstract Division at the Creek County Fair in 2019, “I was very proud of that.”
If only being able to use his left arm is not enough of a challenge, Olivas is also partially color blind.
“I can see blues, yellows, and some reds but they get mixed up with brown. Blue will get mixed up with pink, yellow will get mixed up with green… I guess after a while. You might say I am color illiterate.”
John said the art teacher who replaced Sally gave him “a crash course” in color science. “If you can read, you can make any color in the world. All you have to do is read the primary colors. I now mix all my own colors at the table on a palette.” Olivas said he can see shades so he can tell the difference between “dark and light.”
John works primarily with acrylics and occasionally he will utilize “acrylic pour,” which is clear acrylic poured over the work of art.
He has also mastered a technique called “pointillism,” in which the artist uses a small brush to make tiny distinct dots to form an image.
Olivas is indeed multi-talented. Besides painting, he now crafts steam-punk creations such as a lamp made from a component of an M-16 rifle, and a walking cane from Lego.
John sells his works at The Center for Individuals with Physical Challenges, The Equality Center in Tulsa, and Liggett Studio in Tulsa. He donates a portion of his profits to The Center for Individuals With Physical Challenges.
John Olivera is an extraordinary artisan and his will to overcome his physical challenges is an inspiration to all.
About the Sapulpa Artists’ Guild
The Sapulpa Artists’ Guild will resume classes Thursday, January 6. The Guild meets every Thursday at the Senior Citizens Center at 515 E. Dewey Ave. Parking is available in the rear of the building and the entrance is through the back door. The group works on individual projects in oils, acrylics, watercolors, and pastels. No experience or art training is necessary. Help and formal instruction are available from the Sapulpa Artists Guild President, Sam Houghton, who is a retired art teacher and painter extraordinaire.
The diverse group of artists includes award-winning professional painters, amateur artists, and everyone in between. “Anyone can learn to paint if they want to,” said Houghton. Additional information can be found on the Sapulpa Artist Guild’s Facebook page.
Membership in the guild is not necessary to participate in the classes but anyone who wants to join the guild can do so for the meager sum of $20 per year.
Anyone who is interested is welcome to visit the class. Classes are free, however, class size is limited and those wishing to take part in this excellent opportunity to hone their artistic skills should contact Sherman Baker at 918-344-6506, or Sam Houghton at 918-224-8106 as soon as possible.
