Another Sand Artist Takes the AGT Stage in Austin

Although there has already been a sand artist this season, the one from tonight was my favorite. Joe Castillo, originally from Mexico, has been cultivating his love of art over the past 40 years. His act consisted of the song “God Bless the USA” by Lee Greenwood and the creation of a very patriotic piece of art using sand and art. Check it out:

Can you get any more patriotic? I love how in the end, the picture ended up as Lady Liberty.

As I mentioned, he was born in Mexico, but moved to the USA in 1963 after his father died. He grew up very religious and has been involved in art since he was enrolled in an art class taught by his mother when he was five years old.

Castillo worked in advertising for 18 years but sold his business after his wife died from breast cancer when they were in their 20s. At that point, he graduated from the Ashbury Seminary. Since he has expressed his love for God through his work and performed at many conferences for youth called ArtStories, where he illustrates Biblical stories in a beautiful way.

The specific name of the act his performed on AGT is called SandStory. He uses sand on a light table that are projected onto a large screen. He has performed on CBS, NBC, BBC, Kings, presidents, and more. He often performs at church and youth conferences and is available for hire. This is a performance he did for a promo on the CBS Show, Ghost Whisperer:

He has a lot of videos floating around the video, and some of his best can be viewed here on his website. This is one of my favorites: