SWOSU grad has been creating art for as long as he can remember

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  • Provided This photo shows two pots made by Stephen Walker.
  • Stephen Walker
  • Provided This painting is “Uncle Bob.” Walker named this picture Uncle Bob after his Uncle Bob and he was the biggest cowboy Walker ever knew.
  • Provided Top right, shows a drawing created by Stephen Walker, of a cowboy in deep thought.
  • Provided Bottom right, shows a drawing created by Stephen Walker, of pottery filled with supplies.
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“I always liked drawing as a kid and art is fun,” Stephen Walker said. “I began in third and fourth grade and people really encouraged me. I was always drawing and was always fiddling around on something.”

Walker is a SWOSU alumni art major and was active in the military for 23 years and graduated from SWOSU in 1986.

Walker has been married to his wife Johna for 34 years. He was stationed at Fort Leonard Wood, in Missouri. He is retired and currently lives in Waynesville, Missouri, a town just northwest of Fort Leonard Wood, located along Interstate 44.

Stephen and Johna have two daughters, Morgan and Stephanie and a grandson, Solomon. Walker assists his wife as she works for a real estate company.

Walker grew up in West Sacramento, California, and they moved to Blair in the summer of 1980 and he graduated from Blair High School in 1982, then went to SWOSU to be an art major.

“When I went to college at SWOSU, it was time to make some real decisions,” Walker said. “I had to pick a major and chose biology because it came easy to me. What happened were other activities got in the way of studying hard for biology and I changed my major to art. It was a really easy transition since I was taking art classes at SWOSU as well.”

Walker said he learned a lot under his professors like Monte Hoke and George Calvert and Walker said SWOSU was a great environment for art.

Walker contacted the Weatherford Daily News about a painting he had created while in college, titled “Uncle Bob.”

In 1987 he sold it to an elderly lady at a student art sale at SWOSU. He said he named it Uncle Bob because he was going to give it to his Uncle Bob.

“Uncle Bob was the biggest cowboy I ever knew,” Walker said. “I never wanted to get rid of it in the first place, but a sweet old lady said she really liked my painting and she wanted it and I sold it to her. I came across a picture of it and it brought some good memories and I want to be able to enjoy the painting myself. ”

Walker graduated from SWOSU, then he went into the U.S. army for 23 years and he did a little bit of art work here and there when he had time.

While he was in West Sacramento, Walker won a student drawing contest, drawing the new mascot in junior high, which was a Golden State ASTEC Warrior. He painted the picture after he won the contest.

“My painting was on two sheets of plywood,” Walker said. “It hung in the gym for years, but they changed the name of the school and mascot since then.”

His parents were married before they had Walker and their names are Johnie and Nema Walker. Walker has two half-brothers and a half-sister. One of his half-brothers lives in Reno, Nevada, and his other half-brother lives in Anchorage, Alaska. His half-sister lives in California. His mother still lives in Blair, but his dad passed away last year.

“When you finish a project, it is satisfying,” Walker said. “Most projects take a long time and when you get into art, it makes you use the other side of your brain and is really relaxing. It is really cool to see all the hard work you put in pay off.”