L.A. (Chip) Paul first exposure to art was when he carved his first wooden mask while he was in Boy Scouts. As time passed, he developed proficiency in several artistic mediums including charcoal, pen & ink, watercolor and oil painting, stained glass and wood & stone carving. His figurative sculptures have won several awards including the best in show at multi-state competitions and he had an article published on how to carve a wooden doll head in a national magazine. In December 1995, he moved to the Kansas City area where he was introduced to noted Kansas City sculptor Paul McGovney. Under McGovney, Chip refined his sculpting skills in water clay, and learned the craft of mold making and lost wax casting in both bronze and silver. These efforts culminated with the first series of award winning bronze sculptures in 2000 and figure studies in 2002. His bronze sculptures at that time could be purchased through retailers in Breckenridge, CO and Estes Park, CO. Since Kansas City is also the home of Hallmark Cards, Chip was eventually exposed to the field of calligraphy and took a series of classes in Spencerian script from the very talented Michael Sull. He was later influenced by the classically trained Peter Noth in Gothic Fraktur hand, and took several classes under him (both Michael and Peter were previously Hallmark artists). In the summer of 2019, Chip retired and he and his wife moved to the Pacific Northwest (Sedro-Woolley) where he was put in touch with the RainWriter calligraphy community. Chip was able to attend his first meeting just prior to the Covid-19 shutdown, and is very much looking forward to working with the group in the future. Chip is still active in the various art fields, but is gravitating more and more towards the calligraphic arts. He can be reached at the following e-mail address: kcsculptor@gmail.com