Gerald “Farley” Dennis is a painter who never touches a paintbrush.

In fact, he doesn’t use any conventional painting tools, yet he has created countless pieces of art that have recently been displayed in the Mandeville City Hall as part of their Artist of the Month program.

The Mandeville resident calls his work Aerosol Art because he uses spray paint to construct vibrant landscapes on canvas, landscapes that include Martian-like scenery with twin moons and dust-covered expanses shimmering with metallic tones, natural landscapes with the bright, burning sun setting into a lush terrain of green that overlooks a pristine pool of water, and waterfalls framed by ancient trees and the twilight sky illuminated by the distant moon.

Farley Dennis displays one of the paintings he created using his unique Aerosol Art. (Staff Photo by Chad Ruiz)

Dennis said he discovered the unique art form in 2002 while on vacation in Las Vegas.

“I saw this guy in the street doing this, and I thought, hey, I could do that,” he said. And that he did, but not until persistent practice paid off.

A typical creative venture for Dennis involves temporarily leaving his wife and three children and vacating to the small wood shed in the family’s back yard. Here he said, “is where the magic happens.”

Armed with a paint scraper, nails, screws and other assorted items found in the modern tool shed, Dennis gets to work blending aerosol colors onto a white canvas, where he then manipulates the paint with his tools to create his futuristic snapshots.

“It really only takes a couple of minutes to make because you have to work fast or the paint will dry on you,” he said.

He exits his workshop donning a smile and another Aerosol Art to add to his collection, a collection that has recently earned him some extra cash.

“I don’t see it as a means of support,” Dennis said. “It’s just a hobby for me.”

His unique art form recently attracted public attention when it was displayed in the Mandeville City Hall. Since then, he said, he’s sold several paintings and received a call from the founder of the new art program in Madisonville requesting his enrollment in their organization.

“I think it’s very unusual because he uses spray paint, but he generates something very artistic,” Pat Ward with Art for Madisonville said. “It is a very original approach, and I think he’s definitely got something that people ought to see.”

“I’ve never seen anything like it before,” Mandeville Art Director Nancy Clark said. “This may catapult his career.”

Maintaining his meek manner, Dennis simply attributes his talent to his grandparents.

“My mama’s parents were both artists,” he said, pointing to two paintings hanging in his office that depict random life in the New Orleans landscape. He added his mother also inherited an artistic ability.

“She makes roses out of bread,” he said. “She would make bouquets out of bread — roses that last forever.”

He also said it seems the artistic gene was passed on to his children because they like to draw and often want to help him with his projects.

Thickening Dennis’ roots, his father’s side of the family once owned E.A. Farley’s Florist in New Orleans, which he said was the largest florist in the South and the second largest in the country.

As for Dennis’ future, he sees himself continuing his hobby and experimenting with different landscapes.

For more information on his art, call (504) 432-8078.