Herb Eaton: Maker of Things
Herb Eaton—Bloomington, Illinois’s “Maker of Things”—has always been an artist of many mediums. Surrounded by the landscapes that inspire his work, Eaton celebrates the prairie that characterizes this part of the Midwest, and the storytelling themes it generates.
Born in west Peoria, Eaton’s childhood home was quite rural and sat close to the Kickapoo Creek. Wandering around the forests and thickets with his friends and siblings, Eaton would disappear into the woods. These images continue to dominate his work, particularly in his oil paintings and sketches.
In school, Eaton “was one of those kids that scored real high on all those standardized tests, but [his] grade point average was something below abysmal.” Though he was always sketching on scrap paper and digging through his dad’s building materials, Eaton was 23 before he ever took a true art class.
After moving to Bloomington with his high school sweetheart, Pam, so she could attend Illinois State University (ISU), Herb admits that “[he] really was kind of confused.” He worked for a few years before deciding to study the visual arts and received both his undergraduate and MFA degrees from ISU.
Herb characterizes himself as having ADD, or attention deficit disorder, and for years was frustrated by his inability to “focus [himself] on getting a body of work that would appeal to galleries, that would get [him] a teaching gig,” etc. Yet, with access to materials, able hands, and an eager imagination, Herb was building a rich portfolio while gaining ideas and skills.
In the meantime, after purchasing a historic 1902 building in downtown Bloomington, Herb designed and built “almost-indestructible toys” made of walnut, cherry, and hard maple with a business partner under the company “Plank & Pin.” He also created numerous hands-on, interactive exhibits for children’s museums across the country and was a founding member of Bloomington’s Children's Discovery Museum.
Eventually, after Herb transitioned back to focusing on painting and sculpture, Herb and Pam turned the production space into a public studio and gallery. Over the years, Pam and Herb have championed the art scene in Bloomington by establishing art walks, supporting other local artists, and creating a strong art community downtown. To Herb and Pam, participation is essential.
Throughout Herb’s artistic career, his images have always been local—featuring corn, prairie, and the Mackinaw River—through the lens of narration, drama, and storytelling. He describes drawing as a fascinating practice.
“You’re convincing somebody that this flat bunch of black smears is, you know, whatever, a tree, a river, a person, whatever. And the skill to do that is kind of magic.”
Recently, Herb’s creative spirit has taken him in a new direction. While battling a long-lingering infection from a rattlesnake scratch, Herb couldn’t work much in the studio. Instead, he sorted through years of musings and ideas he had scribbled on countless 3x5 cards. An admirer of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Herb has always been fascinated by the famous skull: Yorick.
So, he started writing.
In 2025, Herb published his fictional biography of Yorick, a tale that follows his resurrection and five-hundred years of travel that leads him to an abandoned farm on the Illinois prairie in the 21st century.
So, what’s next for Herb Eaton?
“I’ve done so much and don’t really see a need to produce the same thing again.”
But at the same time, “the hands get antsy,” and there’s always more stories to tell.
