He was born prematurely at six months with an undeveloped lung and fit in his father's hand when he left the hospital. His relatives were involved in a Southern California gang, where he grew up around drugs and violence.

When E.J. was in high school, his dad was jailed for marijuana possession. And he perservered through discrimination in Utah to eventually become one of fewer than 200 blacks who then attended the University of Utah.

"E.J.'s been a fighter since day one - to do something positive," said his father, Edward Curry. "It's amazing. . . . It's all from the grace of God."

Despite life's challenges, one of the things that has kept E.J. motivated, besides his parents' encouragement, is painting and drawing.

Today, with a fine arts bachelor's degree from the U., 26-year-old E.J. is pursuing his art with a hip-hop twist, and his work is slowly making its way into galleries around Salt Lake City.

E.J. says the only way he has been able to overcome life's obstacles is by staying focused on his goals. As a black male, he said he only had three options playing sports, rapping or gang-banging, but he wanted to do art.

"In my family, the word college is just a dream," he said.

E.J. said he decided not to join a gang and stay out of prison, and his relatives and friends respected his decision.

"It's all about choice," he said. "The strong people in this world are those who use their [heads] instead of their fists."

Since E.J. was about 1, his dad said he started doodling on paper with a pencil. By the time he was 5, he was drawing images. And later, after playing baseball or basketball, he would sketch pictures around the house.

Curry said he knew E.J. had talent.

E.J. "would stay in his little area with his paper and pencil," Curry said. "He never stopped drawing."

E.J. remembers drawing pictures of Batman, Bugs Bunny, Scooby-Doo and other cartoon characters for elementary school classmates. They would pay him a $1 per drawing that he would use to buy ice cream.

E.J. - one of five siblings - moved to live with his mom, Bertha Curry, in Sandy in fifth grade. He and his brother were two of a handful of black students at their school. They fought with other students who called them the N-word and teachers who told them they didn't speak properly, he said.

"People just stared at us all the time," he said.

Within a year, they returned to California with their dad.

In junior high, he started learning about Picasso and Van Gogh in art class. That's when E.J. said he became serious about building his "own artistic path."

In high school, E.J.'s father paid for him to take distant-learning classes from an art academy. But, during his senior year, his father was jailed.

So, E.J. returned to live with his mom and graduated from West High School in 2001. With the help of some black U. faculty members, he earned a scholarship to the U.

As the only black student in his art classes, E.J. said he sometimes felt as the other students and professors were scared of him. He wasn't sure if it was his hip-hop style - wearing baggy clothes and his hair in cornrows.

"I felt like I was not worthy of being there because I was judged on my appearance," he said.

Eventually, E.J. said folks warmed up to him, and he took some classes from a few art professors, such as John Erickson, who really encouraged him.

Erickson, an artist who has taught at the U. since 1985, said E.J.'s gift lies in his ability to be physical and emotional when he is painting. He also said E.J. has a strong work ethic to gain needed experience.

"He's taken quite seriously by teachers and colleagues," Erickson said. "He's going to have a real adventure as an artist."

For now, E.J. works as a telephone customer representative, while he lives with his mom and paints in the basement.

He usually works on six to 12 paintings at a time. He puts them all on the floor and listens to hip-hop, jazz, R&B and other genres of music while he paints.

He recently had an art exhibit at a Salt Lake City coffeehouse and gallery, where his pieces retailed for about $500 each.

E.J. said he tries to paint as often as he can because he loves the energy and feels like he's "the king."

"I feel like I'm untouchable," he said.

jsanchez@sltrib.com