Local artist paints Colbert

Milford freelance artist Robert Thibeault's latest portrait has a national audience.

His ridiculous rendering of funny guy Stephen Colbert was featured on Monday night's episode of "The Colbert Report" as the winner of the "Stephen Colbert Art Me Up Challenge." In the episode, after Colbert discloses that he is, in fact, the subversive graffiti artist Banksy (Colbert was kidding, of course), the sarcastic talk show host runs to his mantel and reveals Thibeault's "Star Wars"-themed artwork in all of its glory.

Colbert congratulated Thibeault on winning mantel honors, told him that he can expect to become a very famous artist, and added that he looks forward to Thibeault's "meteoric rise and drug-fueled decline."

"I'm waiting for my drug-fueled decline," Thibeault, 47, told us, chuckling.

Thibeault said he created the portrait of Colbert a few weeks ago and was notified over the weekend that the work of art would be featured on the show. Asked to explain the piece, Thibeault said, "I just thought [it put him] in a great position of power." Like a good freelancer, Thibeault also recommended that we check out the rest of his work at www.bobtibo.com.

You can watch the clip here: