If you have a stereotype of what a painter looks like, man or woman...get rid of them.

One Kansas artist shows us delicate detail and brute strength can go hand in hand.

A member of the collective, phillip stevens walks us through his journey to art.

"I did some in high school and then i did the work thing and then I went back to college to be a graphic designer. But I eventually went to the dark side to studio arts and I have ever since."

But you could say Stevens lifts way more than a paintbrush. When he's not painting, he's competing in strong man competitions.

"Yeah, people get a kick out of it. I'm an odd ball."

What is out of the ordinary is Steven's approach to his subjects. He's not painting the emotion behind them, but simply the subjects themselves.

"Context. Now I just go up to strangers and ask for something to paint, anything, don't tell me what it is."

That's exactly how he found the objects for one of his favorite pieces.

"These are my brother's old shoes, I asked him to find me something and he found me his stinky old shoes. It leaves it open. It's just painting for me, it doesn't matter what it means to me, I want to know that it means something to you."

You can find stevens' work at the collective gallery at topeka's westboro mart as part of their holiday show through january.