Who is Don Monroe? That's not as easy to answer as you might think. I've been many things in my life trying to find myself: I was a truck driver, a salesman, a martial arts instructor and even a gentlemen's club manager! That last job pretty much pointed me in the right direction. I knew I loved beautiful women and I knew I could draw. I just needed to figure out how to combine the two and earn a living from it.
By now, it's pretty easy for me to say who I am. I'm a dad, a grandpa and a great husband if (I do say so myself!), but, I'm also a full-time freelance artist from Louisville, Ky. I've been drawing pin-ups and erotic art for about 8 years, but I've been drawing since I was big enough to hold a pencil in my hand. I love art, all types of art, but I really love pin-up and erotic art! Recently my work was published in issue 12 of MysticVessel Magazine and I just released my first Limited Edition Art Card Set - Naughty Girls Volume 1.
My mother was an artist, and some of my earliest memories are of watching her draw and paint. I guess you could say she planted the seed that started me down this wonderful path of life as an artist. I'm primarily self taught, reading everything I could get my hands on and simply asking other artists that I admire for any tips that could help me develop and improve my own style. The artists that have influenced my work and gave me hope that I can make a living doing what I love, reads like a who's who of pin-up artists from Hajime Sorayama, Olivia de Berardinis, Armando Huerta, Jon Hul to Barbara Jensen. They've all influenced me in one way or another, and without them paving the way, I know I wouldn't be doing what I'm doing today.
One of my dreams as an artist, is to someday have my name mentioned in the same breath as the great pin-up artists that inspired me, and I hope that when I'm long gone from this big, beautiful planet of ours, my artwork will inspire the next great pin-up artists of the future.
A guy can dream right? I hope you enjoy my work!
