Nationally Recognized Muralist Creates Portrait of Tubaist

Nationally recognized muralist Roberto Regalado has created a portrait of tuba soloist Ralph Hepola. The painting has been accepted into the juried “Pure Enjoyment” art exhibit at Springfield Regional Arts Council in Missouri. Pure Enjoyment “celebrates the freedom, beauty, and harmony of the natural world.” Regalado featured the sun prominently in this 50 X 50-inch work, which he painted from a photo he took of Hepola performing as direct sunlight blazed off his tuba. The opening reception is part of the October First Friday Art Walk. In-person exhibition dates are October 4-24 and virtual exhibition dates are October 1-31.

Artist Roberto Regalado and his wife Linda Spencer of Laughingwell Studio in Long Lane, Missouri have enhanced countless public spaces with their murals, artworks and sprayed skies including McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, the Bass Pro stores in Toronto and Las Vegas, numerous Cabela’s stores, and Parrot Cove Water Park in Garden City, Kansas. They’ve done it all – from private homes to restaurants, hotels, theaters, churches, a hospital, and 300,000-square-foot retail spaces. More info at LaughingwellStudio.com and Laughingwell Studio on Facebook.

In 2024, tubaist Ralph Hepola won a major grant from the John Stites Jazz Awards, was a runner-up in the Made in New York Jazz Competition, and was awarded a screening at the Paris Lift-Off Film Festival in France. More info at RalphHepola.com