Video by Brian Smith.

Watercolors have been a source of solace for Henry Walker, former Kent State English professor, since surgery for throat cancer left him unable to teach. The hobby, that got him through such a difficult time in his life, has earned him quite a bit of recognition, including an invitation to the American Watercolor Society’s annual show in New York City and regular showings at the Butler Museum in San Diego.

Most recently, Walker’s paintings were shown at the Moos Gallery at Western Reserve Academy in Hudson.     

“It is great fun to paint,” Walker said in a press release. “I have a blast and dance when it is going well.”

Walker said he likes the way the paint works on the paper, but that’s not to say watercolors are easy.

“I paint with my eye, not with my brain,” Walker said in the press release. “It is the object that appeals to me.”

Walker gets his inspiration from trips he and his wife took to Italy, Florida, the east coast of the U.S. and Lake Erie.

“Every painter talks about light,” Walker said in a press release. “Italian light is unique. The sepias and umbers just glow in the sunlight. Go to the east coast here and the light is totally different, diffused by the ocean. Ohio light has a bleak reality. It is very unforgiving, particularly Ohio November.”

Walker, currently 75, studied art for one year at the Columbus School of Art and Design before attending Kent State with a double major in history and English.

The last day of the gallery is Thursday, Feb. 20.

Contact Katherine Nix at [email protected]