- Well, welcome to my garage.

- [Jason] His garage is filled with all the things you'd expect to find in a typical garage.

There's beach chairs and coolers, lawnmowers and golf clubs, Halloween and Christmas supplies and wreaths, even a kayak and bins, lots of plastic bins.

But it's what's inside those bins that sets this particular garage apart.

- I ran outta space in the house, so I had to start stacking 'em together and I put 'em in these bins here just to get 'em outta the way.

- [Jason] The garage serves not only as a storage unit, but also an art studio.

- I always start with the subject's right eye.

I draw it first.

(upbeat music) - Ironically enough, the word art appears in both his first and last name.

Art Cozart.

- This is quite a coincidence.

- [Jason] And it's what Art is drawing on that's the most unique and what fills those bins.

Styrofoam cups.

- It wasn't planned, I can tell you.

- [Jason] Take a look for yourself from movie and television stars like the three stooges plus Shemp.

007, James Bond, Groucho Marx, Redd Foxx from "Sanford and Son," the cast of "Jaws" plus the shark.

- I like the ones the movie stars.

He has done some of the best movie star cups you would ever believe.

- [Jason] There's Rodney Dangerfield and Mrs. Doubtfire, Eddie Munster, Spock from "Star Trek," the Cleaver Brothers from "Leave It to Beaver" and the cast of "Gilligan's Island."

- All those series in that timeframe of TV shows, which we both loved.

- [Jason] He's drawn musicians like the Beatles, Aretha Franklin, Jimi Hendrix, Elvis, Ted Nugent, Mick Jagger, and the recently departed Jimmy Buffett.

- I couldn't name too many stars that are present day, I guess.

My mind is still in the past.

- [Jason] All told the number of cups that Art has drawn.

- [Art] Probably two or 3000 I would say.

- [Jason] And this particular form of art, all happened by accident.

- He doodled occasionally, but not, no, this came out of nowhere.

- [Jason] For 38 years, Art worked as a baggage handler at Charlotte Douglas Airport.

- Parking planes and all that good stuff.

(soft music) - [Jason] One day in late 2000 after finishing a cup of coffee, Art grabbed a pen and started doodling.

- And the cup was just something I had in handy.

It was just something that was right there and I could use it, that's what I did.

- [Jason] The drawings had airport themes, like a jet way, an Evel Knievel jumping over a row of baggage carts.

- After that, I just got in a habit and if I had an empty cup, I'd take my ball point pen and start drawing things on it.

I would draw funny stuff, trying to get a laugh outta my coworkers.

- [Jason] For Art, it became the perfect way to kill a little downtime between loading and unloading planes.

And soon coworkers began making requests.

- I was kind of tentative at first.

Tried to draw a person I hadn't really drawn any people but I started doing it and the more I did it, the easier it got.

- He'd been doing this about two years.

Okay, then maybe three.

And his work had really gotten really good.

- [Jason] Wife Nancy put out the word and soon Art was getting all sorts of media attention.

Had displays in local museums and visited with kids in schools.

- I never thought it would take off like that, but it did.

It's been a blessing from God.

- [Jason] Nancy even set up a website to start selling some of Art's art.

- I thought it would be a great idea.

I still do.

- But that wasn't any fun trying to sell 'em.

People were buying 'em, you know, I wasn't really killing, I'd say I sold a few of 'em, but it became a chore.

It's not the same as just drawing something that I wanted to draw or just drawing it for a friend.

- [Jason] A typical cup takes Art about an hour to complete, and every cup he draws on is one he drank out of.

- Probably 99.9% of them.

- [Jason] As his skills developed, so too did his arsenal of tools.

From a straight ballpoint pen in the early days to an array of fine point pens and sharpies now.

He even uses a golf tee to help make indentations and shadows.

- Like if I'm trying to get some extra shade up around the corner of the eye, I'll reach in there with the tip.

- [Jason] During my visit to his home in Stanley, Art rendered a drawing of me.

- I always have to look at a picture when I draw, I can't just do it off the top of my head.

So it's a very important part, trying to get to get the eyes right.

And after I get that first eye done, I'll measure the width of it and I'll use that to determine the distance between the eyes.

- [Jason] With meticulous precision, Art goes from the eyes to the eyebrows, then to the rest of the face.

His eyes constantly going back and forth from the picture to the cup.

The finished product, well see for yourself.

And you retired when?

- September of 2020.

- [Jason] Retiring three years ago.

Art has transferred his skills over to wood burning, creating the likes of Jim Morrison, Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty.

Clint Eastwood as Outlaw Josie Wales, John Wayne from "True Grit," Don Knotz as Barney Fife from "The Andy Griffith Show."

And even North Carolina's outer banks lighthouses.

- I've been told these things may be worth tens of dollars someday.

- [Jason] And Art isn't the only artist in the family.

Nancy is an award-winning photographer herself.

- I love photography.

Wildlife photography is one of my favorite things to do.

Love that and I love to do a lot of wildlife paintings.

That's what I love.

That's what I do.

- [Jason] It's nice to know that Art, runs throughout the Cozart family.

For "Carolina Impact," I'm Jason Terzis reporting.