Since childhood, Eric Blais has loved drawing, first emulating his older brother’s cartoon sketches and then moving on to superheroes like Spiderman, Superman, and Batman. Like most boys who grow up in Kelowna, British Columbia, he took hockey much more seriously than art through most of his early life, though he kept on “doodling” in art classes.
When he shifted his sport of choice to bodybuilding, however, it sparked a re-discovery of his interest in art. Arnold Schwarzenegger was at the top of the sport and was just beginning in acting, and Eric started sketching bodybuilders in “Barbarian” costume. At first, his sketching was just for fun, but it became the steppingstone into a career when he was hired at a local T-shirt company, eventually becoming art director. At the same time, Eric was providing illustrations to various magazines and developing his growing interest in wildlife and nature photography and painting.
In 1989, he moved to Toronto with a plan to make the big time in five years. Within two weeks, he met his future wife, Dore, and his five-year plan became indefinite. He also began working with Labatt Brewery in Toronto, which led to illustrations for World Cup skiing, Budweiser racing, and Blue Jay baseball, and then to The Incredible Clothing Co. and illustrations for JC Penney, Dillards, Wal-Mart, Zellers, and the Ve- nator Group: Northern Reflections, Northern Elements, and Northern Getaway.
Blessed with a son, Matthew, in 1992 and a daughter, Haley, in 1994, Eric and Dore returned to Kelowna in 2000. Thanks to the internet, Eric has continued his work illustrating for his many long-time clients, as well as pursuing his childhood dreams of painting and illustrating the fan- tastic world of fantasy.
