The spark that ignited Charles Cashwell’s passion occurred at age 9, when he lived in Aiken, SC. Rather shy at the time, Cashwell was so intrigued by a neighbor’s art studio that he boldly knocked on her door and asked if she could teach him to paint. Those classes proved to be the foundation for an ever-evolving career in art.“She would set up a still-life, and we would paint it, learning about composition, values, color theory, and drawing,” he said. “That’s how I paint today, except as you get older, you copy less and paint feelings more.”But Cashwell had bigger ambitions. He attended Ringling School of Art & Design in Sarasota, Florida. After graduating, he started his career as an illustrator but soon broke into the portrait world. He was adept at drawing the figure, so he decided to teach himself how to paint portraits. Most of those clients were connected to Wall Street. Without ever advertising, Cashwell’s portraiture work remained steady throughout the South and Northeast for the next 16 years – until the financial collapse in 2008.“You look at it and think ‘that’s a bummer,’ but it gave me a chance to slow down and do what I really wanted to try.”Thus began his foray into Fine Art and Plein Air. Once again, he taught himself, mastering the quickness needed to capture a moment in time before the mood and lighting changed.“I try to capture that feeling when you glance at something and it catches the corner of your eye,” he says. His impressionistic images have garnered quite a following, earning him invitations and awards from various art communities.“It has taken my entire career to get to this place, and it is a dream come true,” says Cashwell. When asked about the future, he declares, “More of the same — painting, painting, painting.”