Leggett overcomes challenges to become popular artist

By Ruth Ann Ruiz

The Post Newspaper Features Writer

Have you ever fallen off your horse, been injured, and then when you tried to get back on the horse everything else seems to go wrong? Try as hard as you might, you just couldn’t get right back up on that horse. 

Muralist, Daniel Leggett, spent two decades dealing with being thrown from a horse, which once resulted in a neck injury.

The injury led to prescription pain pills. Shortly afterward, Leggett’s mom, who had been his rock, passed away. One bad break followed the other, as his neck injury, kept him from being able to work as a correctional officer in Louisiana. Despite his efforts to get back up on his feet, he just couldn’t stand up without the help of pills.  

Leggett then brought his addiction over to Texas and ended up on the wrong side of the law.  

While incarcerated in Texas, Leggett found his inner ability to visualize and create artistic pieces that have   monetary value. “My cellmate was an artist and he let me have some colored pencils and art an art pad.  I didn’t have any money to buy things, so I started drawing greeting cards to raise funds,” said Leggett, who told how he would trade hand-drawn cards for packages of ramen noodles. This would then lead to him being able to get things like coffee, hygiene items, and more art supplies.

In 2008 Leggett finished his time within the criminal justice system. He did his best to make it back into mainstream society, pay his bills and lead the “right” kind of lifestyle. But, his addiction kept him stumbling and falling and not able to properly mount any horse. Though he did stay out of trouble with the law, getting sober took a combination of work and professional interventions which he finally sought in 2018.

With proper mental health treatment and regular attendance at AA meetings, Leggett, now in his early 50s, began to see the light. While sitting down on the shores of Galveston Bay in Bacliff, his mind clear of all substances, he noticed the driftwood and thought, “Well I can’t afford to go buy wood to paint on, but I can sure paint these pieces of driftwood.” 

Armed with his driftwood paintings, Leggett set up a stand on a corner in Bacliff and sold every piece in one weekend. Thus, began his new life as a paid artist outside of the wire.

His work now encompasses murals depicting marine life and are popping up all over Galveston County. 

With a little help from social media for advertising, in just a few years, he has attracted a vast following of fans and customers. His customers are loyal and love him. 

“He is Amazing, we have people ring our doorbell to ask who painted the artwork on your garage door,” said Cameron Clement, a very enthusiastic client in Galveston. Another satisfied customer in Bacliff, Keith McDonald said, “We loved his work so much we asked him to come back and do more.” 

Leggett hasn’t had a day of art classes. He sees with his mind’s eye what he intends to create and goes forward with his paintings, adding depth, shading, blending and feathering to each piece. When he needs inspiration, Leggett will turn to Bob Ross videos. “I love watching how he paints a flutter and then suddenly it becomes a lake,” he said.

Leggett’s advice for other artists who are just starting out, “Don’t be afraid, just put your work out there.”