Fame No Guarantee of Fortune for Homeless Artists

Being mentioned by President George H.W. Bush in a 1999 letter to the Main Street Association of Breckenridge, Texas would be heady stuff for anyone. But for friends Billy Ines, now 54, and Angel Valencia, 64, it was the highlight of their rise from homelessness to local household names.

Fame doesn't always bring fortune, though. It just opens a few more doors. Thanks to a mural painted by Ines and Valencia, Breckenridge, Texas had beat out 138 other cities to win the "State's Best Public Improvement Project." Hosted by the Texas Downtown Association, the honor helped make Breckenridge a destination city and Ines and Valencia models for what's possible — even if you've been living in a box. What it didn't do was guarantee them money or even a home. That's where business acumen and marketing skills come in.

In 1998, the year before they made headlines, Ines and Valencia were homeless in Munday, Texas, painting signs and murals, a skill Ines developed as a child. With the help of townspeople in Munday, the men got into public housing as they worked their way off the streets and focused on their small business. Their break came when they got the job in Breckenridge.

"Homelessness. It's the hardest thing ever," Ines told me. "I don't ever want to be homeless again. People think they have it bad, they need to live in a box in an alley for five and a half months like I did."

The new mural brought tourism and attention to the town of Breckenridge, but it also brought positive attention to Ines. He describes the award and the resulting publicity as "overwhelming." Demand for his talent skyrocketed, creating more business than he could handle, so Ines became a bit more selective, then later decided to quit painting murals altogether  in order to care for Valencia, his assistant. Valencia suffered from some severe health problems, including diabetes.

"It was hard, painting with one hand, taking care of Angel with the other," Ines recalls. Loyalty runs deep and Ines says Valencia was there for him when he needed help so it's only right that he return the favor. The men have worked and traveled together for years. Mural painting jobs in Breckenridge slowed down so the partners painted in surrounding towns, including Graham and Olney. They took up residence in Amarillo and lived there for about six years. Eventually they bought and renovated an old Airstream trailer and now live in it in Altus, Oklahoma.

They park wherever they can around town and "just get by" month-to-month. Ines isn't looking forward to winter. He has adopted five cats and worries about how the cold and dampness will affect them. The cats live in a falling down house next to where he parks the Airstream.

But fame, no matter how overwhelming at the time, fades. Ines knows it and is working hard to make sure he and his friend don't slip over that edge and back on the street. All the attention Ines' mural painting garnered a decade ago now fits in a shoebox full of clippings under his bed. The men live on Valencia's disability check and the occasional job restoring old signs that Ines can find. In a town dominated by the demand for the ease and speed of vinyl lettering it's hard to find people who appreciate and can afford hand-painted signs, let alone murals.

The demand for his skills has faded, but his talents haven't. Now that Valencia's health has stabilized the two men dream of getting back on the road, Route 66 to be exact, and painting more murals. Ines said he's looking for businesses along Route 66 that want murals, signs, restorations or painting, but he's just not sure how to get started again.

"I don't think I'll ever stop working, but I don't want to stop traveling. I think it would be the coolest job ever to work our way up and down Route 66, painting murals."

Ines can be contacted at billyines54@yahoo.com or through his website, billytheartist.net.

Photo credit: billytheartist.net