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"I wanted to meet the man who painted this guitar." -- Johnny Cash, November 2002, about a guitar that Cash held with his portrait on it, painted by Roy Bills. ~~~0~~~ Here is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to purchase a portait in oil of Elvis Presley by Michigan artist Roy Bills. This guitar is signed by artist Roy Bills. It was painted by Bills in the mid- to late-1990s. This is the first time that this unique piece of artwork is available for sale, in addition to many other original Roy Bills oil portraits of country music legends in separate eBay listings (see list below). This painting is done on the back of an Tara guitar. The painted surface measures approximately 12-1/2" x 11-1/2". This listing is for the artwork only, but of course the guitar is included. The guitar is as is: it was likely purchased new, used as a canvas by the artist, may have some travel and display wear, has spent most of its existence on display, and has a couple of letters penned onto the front. About Michigan artist Roy Bills: Michigan artist Roy Bills is best-known for his natural portraits of country music stars that he painted throughout the 1990s and into the 2000s. He created more than 160 portrait guitars (alas, 50 of them were lost in a fire some years ago). He began each piece by drawing guides and rules on the wooden surface of the guitar, then sketched an outline in pencil. He followed with graphite, and then acrylics, before finishing them in oil. The entire process could take as long as 300 hours. Most portraits are based on photographs of the singers. Bills has been featured on "Crook & Chase" and on "Good Morning America". He sold a few guitars to celebrities and donated some to local auctions or to charities, but preferred to keep most of them. Bills no longer paints portrait guitars. Following is a list of Roy Bills oil portraits that I'm currently selling in separate eBay listings. All of these guitars are signed by Bills, and many of them are signed by the musicians themselves. Here's the list: Johnny Cash (signed by Cash), Marty Robbins, Kris Kristofferson, Meryl Haggard, Wayland Jennings (signed by Jennings), Willie Nelson (signed by Nelson), Boxcar Willie, Loretta Lynn (one of two are signed by Lynn), Merle Haggard (signed by Haggard), Conway Twitty, Chet Atkins, George Jones (signed by Jones), Kitty Wells (signed by Wells), Carl Smith, Charlie Pride (signed by Pride), Bill Monroe (signed by Monroe), Grandpa Jones, Vince Gill (signed by Gill), Amy Grant (signed by Grant), Minnie Pearl, Randy Travis (signed by Travis), Martina McBride (signed by McBride), Terri Clark (signed by Clark), Elvis, Brad Paisley (signed by Paisley), Blake Shelton (signed by Shelton), Hank Williams Sr., Shelly Wright (signed by Wright), George Morgan (signed by Lori Morgan), Jim Ed Brown (signed by Brown), Patsy Cline, Tammy Wynette, Pam Tillis (signed by Tillis), Mel Tillis (signed by Tillis), Hank Williams Jr., Lester Flatt (signed by Flatt), Earl Scruggs (signed by Scruggs), Marty Stewart (signed by Stewart), Connie Smith (signed by Smith), Kix Brooks, Ronnie Dunn, Brother Bashful Oswald, Tanya Tucker (signed by Tucker), Allison Krauss, Barbara Mandrell (appears to be signed on back by Louise Mandrell), Johnny Russell (signed by Russell), Reba McIntyre, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Mike Snyder (signed by Snyder), and Sherrie Austin (signed by Austin). Some or all of these guitars may still be available in separate eBay listings.
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