What separates de Hilster from other artists is the combination of his natural artistic talent, his groundbreaking work in science, and his love for Brazil. From his work in AI and physics, to the love of a country where he lived and where his art exploded into color, you will find a mix of all of these things in de Hilster’s work.
If you don’t understand the man and his history, you will not understand his art. It is unique in the world.
Artist Biography
David started drawing at the age of three and by the time he was in elementary school, people were recognizing his talent. Although his drawings from his first art class in Galion Ohio at age eight have been lost, those who saw then knew David’s talent was special.
By middle school, David took his first art lesson and painted his first painting on canvas in a summer class put on by his middle school art teacher. His art teacher was doing geometric multicolored painting and David copied the style and the result prompted his teacher to write a letter David was painting at a college level.
David also did musical theater covers for his high school which again showcased his talent. For the most part, David was drawing with pencil in black and white.
Explosion of Color
In 1987, David moved to Brazil where he got a job in the area of AI and computers and took a course at the famous Parque Lage in Rio de Janeiro where his art exploded into color. David took life drawing classes drawing the human body. His teacher saw his talent and said he was going to unlock and explode his art into color. The instructor gave David exercises that made the transition to color a painless endeavor and the exes rise is seen below. David used crayons and follow the instructor’s directions which changed de Hilster’s art forever.
Tragedy in Rio
One of David’s teachers in Rio was leading a class in life drawing and instructed everyone to only draw in lines, no shading. David was drawing the model’s back and got bored and he started shading in the muscles. The teacher was going around critiquing the students and when he came to David, he looked at his drawing and yelled out loud “Why do some people just have it!!?” He then took his pencil, put it in this teeth and broke it from both sides and stormed off.
Weeks went by and the teacher wasn’t showing up for class with another teacher had taken his place. David asked where the regular teacher was and the new teacher said “Didn’t you hear? He jumped out his three story apartment and killed himself.” David remembered what he called the pencil incident and the news shook David to his core.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
David returned to the United States and took some art courses and continued his explosion into color. He continued his crayon works and developed scrapings as well. Once David had a body of work, he applied to the young artists rental galleries at the Los Angeles Museum of Art, one of the most prestigious art galleries on the west coast. He was accepted and his art was immediately rented and sold. De Hilster had the distinction of having the only artist to have three people waiting for a single artwork.
Art Studio
In early 1990s, David and his wife moved to an artist loft in Long Beach California where David had his first art show. He worked in artificial intelligence during the day, and painted at night. His wife Doris opened up her first clothing store where she made a line of her own exclusive designs selling to creative types like musicians and artist. David also had his art hanging in Doris’ store – a theme that would follow them through various locations.
Doris moved to into the Long Beach Mall as did David’s artwork. When the Mall was scheduled to be torn down, Doris moved to a location in downtown Long Beach and that is where David began to sell his art. There, he sold to private collectors.
David and Doris eventually moved into a home after the birth of their daughter where David concentrated on family and his profession, leaving art aside for the time.
Florida & Wynwood
In 2015, David and family moved to Florida where David continued to do work in art, doing pencil drawings for special occasions and producing graphic art to canvas. Much of his artistic talent was used on websites, marketing material, and logos for his various endeavors.
In December of 2024, David was hired by Northeastern University at the new Miami campus as an adjunct professor which is located in the world-famous Wynwood Art district. With David in semi-retirement, he is starting to draw again and plans to resume his artwork and sell part of his private collection online.
