004 — The Artist

About Ben Wilson

A creative at heart,
a craftsman by habit.

Painter. Composer. Novelist. Engineer. The disciplines change with the season — the joy of making does not.

005 — Biography
Portrait of Ben Wilson
Ben Wilson

汪啟安 · Wang Qi An

Rexburg, Idaho · USA

The Story

From Michigan to Taiwan to the high desert of Idaho.

Ben Wilson grew up in Michigan, served as a representative for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Taiwan, and currently lives in southeastern Idaho with his family. The years between have been spent learning to see — and then learning to make what he sees.

Using a watercolor style and a digital medium, Ben seeks to lift and inspire others. His art combines a love of the Savior's restored gospel, the quiet beauty of God's creations, and a fascination with the technologies that let us share both. Temples, scripture stories, national parks, the wings of small birds — every painting is a way of saying look at this; isn't it wonderful?

He signs each original with his Chinese name seal (印章), received while serving in Taiwan. The name on the seal is pronounced Wang Qi An (汪啟安) — a name that has come to feel as much his own as the one given at birth.

Painting is only one of his languages. Ben also composes and produces music — most recently the ongoing album cycle "Moroni vs The AI Takeover" — and is writing a historical-fiction novel, "The Captain's Wife." By day he builds software; by night he builds things you can see, hear, and read. The thread that runs through all of it is the same: imagination disciplined by craft, and craft animated by faith.

Beliefs that shape the work

Ben is an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Savior is the steady center of his life and his work — the reason a temple is worth painting carefully, the reason a song about choosing the light needed to be written, the reason a story about love and resilience on the high seas feels worth finishing. The art is not a sermon; it is the testimony of a person who has been looked after, drawn with grateful hands.

See The Paintings → Get In Touch →
— Artist's Statement

In My Own Words

On learning to see.

I have always liked zoos and aviaries, especially ones highlighting colorful North American birds. Sadly, I spent most of my life merely wishing I could see these beautiful creatures in the wild.

It wasn't until I took the initiative to learn about them first that I began to find them everywhere — even in my own front yard. I couldn't see them until I was prepared to see them.

This obviously comes out in many of my pieces, but more than that I hope my work conveys the lesson I learned. There are blessings and joy in our lives that we might miss if we aren't ready.

Ben Wilson
— On AI

Where AI Fits

On AI in my work.

I started making digital art years before generative tools existed, and I still believe craft is the point. AI is one brush in a much larger studio — useful, sometimes, but never the artist. These are the rules I hold myself to.

  1. Original first

    Nothing AI-generated is released under my name without meaningful artistic transformation. Every piece I sign carries my hand, my eye, and my decisions — not just a model's output.

  2. Verified references

    When I use AI imagery as reference, I reverse-image-search it first. If it traces back to another artist's work, I don't use it. Their rights come before my convenience.

  3. Respect the whole community

    Traditional, digital, AI-assisted — I have respect for everyone working honestly in this space. The aim is a healthier ecosystem where creativity flourishes and artists' rights are upheld.

Where AI does show up on this site — for example, the cast portraits on the Captain's Wife page — it is clearly labeled as such. Innovation and ethics, hand in hand.