The 42-year-old Livonia native now living in Atlanta, returned home this week to dedicate a painting at Fleming's Steakhouse Wine Bar, a chain of high-end eateries that feature his artwork across the country. Arvid, a 1982 Stevenson graduate, calls this piece, "Living on the Inside." Painted on a collage of nine wine crate lids, it features Coach's Insignia wine made from a Napa winery operated by Detroit's own Fisher family.
Arvid debuted the painting at Fleming's Thursday at a fund-raiser for juvenile diabetes, a cause that's important to him since he has two nephews living with the disease. Born Thomas Arvid Smith, the artist moved to Atlanta shortly after high school. "Anybody that's creative in Detroit gets sucked into the auto industry because those are the highest-paying jobs for creative types," he said.
Self-taught in still-life, Arvid backpacked through Europe to study the greats, and when he returned, he took up the European practice of painting outside a cafe. He started out by painting a series of red subjects -- high-top Converse shoes, a wagon, a glass of wine. However, as soon as he finished the wine painting, a patron bought it from him straight off the easel.
After that happened a few times, Arvid said he knew he'd found his niche. Clients also started giving him great wine to enjoy while he worked, which influenced his appreciation. Arvid has painted the inside of wine crates, the outside of a barrel and his new canvas, wine crate lids.
Each work takes at least two months to complete. With a four-year waiting list for original commissioned art, and pieces that command six-digit prices, Arvid has found success. Back at Stevenson, he was the guy who drew cartoons for the yearbook, said longtime friend Chris Peppo of Northville.
"He was the guy in high school everyone knew as the artist," said Peppo, who has a portrait of himself that Arvid drew, which is hanging in his own wine cellar. Retired Stevenson art teacher Mary Ehlert said she was delighted to learn that one of her "sweetest" students continued painting. Ehlert said she knows she hung onto some of Arvid's drawings from his high school days.
While back in town, Arvid stayed with his mom, Priscilla Smith, (who was chilling a bottle of chardonnay in anticipation of his arrival), and he planned to dine out at a variety of his favorite restaurants, from La Shish to Lafayette Coney Island, showing that even though he's often invited to fancy restaurants for charitable wine dinners, he's down to earth. Although he just built a wine cellar at home that can hold at least 6,000 bottles, Arvid says he's not a wine snob. He just likes variety.
"People think that art is for an elite group of people to enjoy -- art is for everyone to enjoy," he said. And he feels the same way about wine. "The best way to learn about wine is by drinking and experiencing.
News RSS