By BARBARA GREEN
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In 2007 Randy Meador made what he calls a “terrible career decision” selling his successful internet marketing business; however, it was a leap of faith that led him down a path to find not only success as a painter but to find the person he feels he was meant to be.
Some 15 years later the 63-year-old Meador sees everything as an opportunity “to create,” which is his true passion whether it is on canvas, in music or on the written page. Today, he asks himself, “Can I …?” leaving the options wide open.
Meador has lived in Saint Jo the past five years, after purchasing an 1897 home where he and wife Michele live after moving from Fort Worth. He had no idea the history of the house would create something of a full circle for him he would not learn until later. In October, Meador closed his third solo show, “Values of the West” at the Davis & Blevins Gallery in Saint Jo.

“All my career choices before I became an artist were because I didn’t want to be poor. I had no intention of doing art, although with a music degree options are musician, teacher or band director,” recalls Meador.
Business appeared to be his niché although he never felt suited for it. Meador started the first online drug store in 1997. The internet was still young so he thought he would ramp it up and sell it, like so many others were doing.
In the process he learned how to market business on the internet. He surrounded himself with “smart people,” who he turned loose for them to reap the benefit.
“We were able to market for some big companies who were late to the party and didn’t know what the internet was. It was pretty easy back then because no one knew how to do anything with it,” explains Meador.
He and Michele raised five children during this period and while his business thrived he wasn’t happy and needed an escape. Meador heard a Winston Churchill quote, “When I paint nothing else exist.” He wanted to go to that place.
One night he picked up some painting supplies and began to teach himself how to paint. He chose watercolors because he thought it was the easiest, but soon found it was the hardest.
“I just played with it each night about an hour. I was having fun. I started studying the top artists and when I traveled I would seek out their art to pick it apart and learn. By the time I became an artist full-time I had developed a bit of a name for myself in the small world of watercolors,” said Meador.

Read the full feature in the weekend Bowie News.