tephen Bates grew up in Lansing, Michigan and graduated from Kendall School of Design in Grand Rapids. He has worked for Hallmark Cards of Kansas City, Missouri, American Greetings Card Company of Ohio, Lansing’s John Henry Company, world’s largest horticulture printers, and for Child Evangelism Fellowship, the world’s largest children’s ministry, located in Warrenton, Missouri. For the past three years Bates has been working as a free-lance artist and illustrator. Bates has received numerous awards and has achieved national recognition for his work. While working for American Greetings, he was chosen by the Johnson family to illustrate the First Day Cover portrait of President Lyndon B. Johnson. The original is now hanging in the L.B.J. Library in Austin, Texas. Bates also received an Award of Excellence and had his watercolor “Bass Harbor” accepted in the Top 200 Arts for the Parks, an esteemed, international competition held in Jackson Hole, WY. However, the frosting on the cake for Bates was receiving a letter from the National Watercolor Society based in California, congratulating him on winning his Signature Membership status. This is one of the highest honors that a watercolorist can achieve. His painting “Angel Wings” was also selected for the 84th Annual Travel Show, which will go to museums and galleries throughout the country during 2005. Bates’ paintings are in many private collections across the States, and his work has been published in several magazines and books including the prestigious Society of Illustrators. Bates’ style is traditional and photo-realistic. First and foremost an illustrator, he enjoys creating a painting that tells a story. He also likes to do still-lives and technical drawings and has many architectural renderings under his belt. For commercial art, Bates uses a MAC and PhotoShop. For fine art, he works in watercolors and oils. Realizing not everyone can pay for an original piece of art, Bates also produces affordable, limited edition Giclee prints of his artwork.