Wheeling man paints at rapid speed

The Chicago Blackhawks logo slowly begins to appear as Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" and "Chelsea Dagger" by The Fratellis boom in the background. Energy is palpable and all eyes are on one man.

No, this isn't the United Center before a Blackhawks game; it's the studio of Wheeling resident and performance artist Elliott From.

From has been creating paintings at a rapid speed in front of audiences since 2007. He uses the words spontaneous, loose and fluid to describe his abstract impressionist artwork.

Once you see him paint the Blackhawks logo in under 10 minutes, it is clear why those attributes are so crucial to his work.

With his company, ArtBeat Live, he's forged a relationship with the Chicago Blackhawks and their charities, met Billy Corgan and performed at this year's Kentucky Derby.

While From has always been interested in art, it wasn't until his late 30s that he considered making a living with this line of work.

He graduated from Bradley University in Peoria with a bachelor's of fine arts in painting, then went on to work as a graphic designer and eventually project director.

By 2006, he had been bouncing around from job to job for a few years following 9/11. From was talking with a friend, trying to figure out what he was going to do next.

"In college, it seemed like all the artists were successful by the time they were 50 and 40, so I wanted to be successful by the time I was 40," From said. "I was 38 then, so I thought 'I gotta do something.'"

The two talked about Denny Dent, who did speed painting when they were in college.

After deciding to take a crack at it, From took a few months to draw up a five-year plan and did his first performance in 2007 at a friend's pool party. Most of his business since then has come to him by word-of-mouth.

He started working out of his garage, and then out of a room in his home before getting an Arlington Heights studio in 2012. Now, he also has a gallery in Arlington Heights that is attached to his partner's yoga studio, Bright Blue Sage.

From says he puts a strong emphasis on charity work. He hopes by the end of next year he will have helped raise $4 million for various charities through events he's performed at. Out of the more than 160 performances he does a year, about 90 percent are for charities, From said.

As an artist, From has drawn inspiration from abstract expressionists Jackson Pollock and Franz Klein. Even in college, From says, he was thinking out of the box.

"Nine out of 10 times I don't practice the painting," From said. "I have the color scheme in my head, and I let the spontaneity take action."

But what happens if he makes a mistake or takes a wrong brush stoke?

"I think I mess up, but they (observers) think it's fantastic," he said.

Most of the paintings he does in Chicago and other cities are based on the area's professional sports teams and architecture. He does about 200 Blackhawks logo paintings a year, he said.

From keeps it simple when it comes to his performance wardrobe. He buys black pants, 20 black shirts and three black leather jackets every year.

From, who doesn't like to be referred to as a speed painter, observes simple rules when it comes to business relationships.

"Be nice, show up on time, say thank-you," From said.