Making Music on the Canvas

Alumnus Rob Hendon's abstract depictions of guitars have become synonymous with Music City and Country music success.

By Janel Shoun-Smith | 615-966-7078  |  01/17/2025

Rob Hendon (BA ’89) arrived at Lipscomb from Ohio with a love for playing guitar and nebulous thoughts about becoming a music artist. That goal morphed into a career in the music business, and that path morphed into a career as an artist, which today keeps him happy and busy… for the moment anyway.

Set up with a studio in his garage in Green Hills, Hendon describes himself as a one-man band who creates and ships art to clients in every state and nine other countries. His humble operation belies his notoriety in the art market.

Known for his vivid and abstract depictions of guitars and Music City, his work can be seen around Nashville in Bridgestone Arena, Warner Records and Studios, Sony Records and Music Publishing, Oceanway Studios, Big Machine Records, Billboard Magazine and the Country Music Hall of Fame.
 

Many an acclaimed music artist has commissioned him to paint their beloved guitars, and artists such as Brad Paisley, Charlie Daniels, Dierks Bentley, Garth Brooks, Luke Combs, Keith Urban and Steve Miller have purchased a Hendon original for their collections.

“I am addicted to guitars and guitar players,” said Hendon. “I’ve always had a one-track mind for guitars, so it was a very natural thing that I started painting them.”The celebrity client that means the most to Hendon was the purchase by the late Les Paul, a jazz, country and blues guitarist who is credited as one of the pioneers of the solid-body electric guitar.

Hendon’s guitar collection topped out at 12 and includes several Les Paul guitars, so when he scored an invite to meet with Paul in New York and the music icon purchased a 35-foot painting of one of Hendon’s Les Paul guitars “That was the ultimate for me,” said Hendon.

“My grandfather got me a Les Paul and we used to play his licks on my guitar. So getting to tell him about my grandpa was really special for me.”

Hendon’s parents were Lipscomb alumni, so when they mentioned that Lipscomb was located in Music City, Hendon was sold right away, he said. During college, he played in various 1980’s small venues such as The Nashville Dog and Fountain Square, developing “a little following,” said Hendon.

But the excitement he felt as he worked in internships in the music business soon overshadowed any hopes of becoming a musical artist himself. During his college career, he worked at Nashville’s iconic amusement park, Opryland, running a booth for visitors to record themselves singing a song. In that way, he met various students from Belmont University, who told him about Belmont’s music business program.

Hendon did not want to leave Lipscomb, so he is grateful that Lipscomb officials allowed him to earn a minor in music business from Belmont University while also earning a Lipscomb Bachelor of Arts in speech communication at the same time.

Upon graduating, he landed a full-time position with Capitol Records, where he worked in A&R, and over 20 years worked his way into several executive positions on Nashville’s Music Row.

However, “I got burned out,” said Hendon. “The music business changed from what I was accustomed to. I got really stressed and started painting in the middle of the night. Then I started giving my paintings away, selling some and donating some to charities, and it kind of took over my life.”

One night, the self-taught artist was painting flowers and experimenting with varnish. The varnish looked like one of his Les Paul guitars, so he morphed the painting into a guitar. “I did the one guitar and people immediately started wanting those,” he said.

Soon having a Hendon painting of your guitar became a symbol of success in the music industry. Record labels, publishing companies and studios often mark significant career achievements with a custom Hendon painting.

Venturing into painting installation and design, Hendon has created a public guitar sculpture honoring Roy Orbison (now in front of Curb Studios), album cover art for Luke Combs, a wall installation at Bridgestone Arena and a Les Paul guitar painting installation at the iconic Gibson Guitars headquarters.

Hendon, a former resident of Sewell Hall and member of Omega Nu, still keeps in touch and goes on outings with his friends from his Lipscomb days. In addition, he created a custom purple guitar painting as a donation to Lipscomb’s George Shinn College of Entertainment & the Arts.

“My style hasn’t changed that much since the beginning,” he said. “I’m way more experienced, but it is still the same style—just what I see.”