(Carthage, MO) -- In this economic climate, you'd be hard pressed to find many people who would consider giving up their day job to pursue a hobby as a career.  
   
But 20 years ago, times were different and that's just what a Carthage man with a passion for paint decided to do.  And as we found out for this week's Oliver's Ozarks report, that leap of faith turned into a colorful journey on canvas.

"I always say if you're a creative person, then you're just compelled to create something, somewhere, somehow," says Andy Thomas.

That idea is what fueled the future for Andy Thomas of Carthage, Missouri.   After college at Missouri Southern in the 1980's, Thomas worked as a full time graphic designer.   But the love for painting he developed as a child never went away.

"My parents flagged me as an artist very early on," says Thomas.

So after a few years in the business world, Thomas opted to leave his job to try and make a buck with his brush.  It turned out to be a wise decision.

He says, "We've been very lucky.  And you know, you have to make hay while the sun shines."

In the beginning, Thomas would paint anything and he'd take his work to small shows like the annual Artsfest on Walnut Street in Springfield.   Today, Thomas is well known for his westerns and Civil War depictions.  Now, he's selling in a whole different arena.

"It's no longer setting up a pup tent on Walnut Street in Springfield.  We'll enter one painting in an art show and both us fly out there just for that show." says Thomas.

In fact one of Thomas' paintings recently sold at auction for more than $100,000.   When you look at the realistic stories Thomas tells in his work, you understand why collectors fork over the cash.

"I want to choreograph the figures in a painting to tell a story," explains Thomas.

In telling Thomas' story, I was suprised to learn there are two things he has a hard time bringing to life on canvas.

"Always have trouble with trees.  And hats.  Hats fit the person when they sit on the head for awhile. So hats are a bit of an issue." says Thomas.

But with 20+ years at the easel under his belt and a following that's growing, Andy Thomas feels happy he pursued his passion to paint and free to animate what he thinks is art.

"I don't care if it's really art, or if art professors don't like it.  I'm just going to paint what I want to paint," says Thomas.

Thomas spends about 10 hours a day, five days a week in his home-based studio.   He's currently doing a series of paintings for the National Park Service based on famous Civil War battleground areas across the country.