Joe Robert LaFone, a Hickory, North Carolina native, saw the movie "Lust for Life", the story of artist Vincent Van Gogh, when he was fourteen years old. Instantly, he knew his life's journey would be the pursuit of art.Coming of age in the 1960's, he tasted the fruits of the countercultural revolution. Along the way he worked at major American art museums and traveled across the country, from Haight-Ashbury in San Francisco to Greenwich Village in New York City. Returning to his home town, he started to paint in 1997 after God spoke to him in a dream. Through his painting, Joe sought understanding of the spiritual nature of artistic creativity. Now an aging hippie, he contributes to Hickory's local color. Share his journey and see where he is today.