Artist Spotlight: David Soileau
By: Dan Gibbs
Local artist David Soileau is a 1984 graduate of East Henderson High School and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a concentration in painting with honors from North Carolina-Asheville in 1990.
He relocated to Lexington, KY after graduation from college and became part of a group called the Artist’s Attic. He landed a contract with the Texas Roadhouse restaurant chain and over the past 20 years he has painted over 900 murals for the restaurant chain. Two of these murals can be seen locally at the Texas Roadhouse in Asheville at the Biltmore location and his Texas Roadhouse murals can be seen in 49 states and overseas in Dubai. These murals often depict sports teams, culture, and famous people that are local to that restaurant and they also often incorporate the Texas Roadhouse’s mascots Andy Armadillo and/or Iggy the Iguana. People love their pets and what better where to immortalize your pet than to have a painted portrait of them. David started a website called www.poochcanvas.com where people commission him to paint portraits of their pets and other animals. He paints them in oils and/or acrylics.
