|  | |
As a child during WWII, I drew tanks, warships and airplanes depicting U.S. forces beating the Nazis. Drawing battle scenes was the most interesting part of school to me and I never made it through high school. I hated anyone telling me what to do. I ran away from home, hitchhiked around the country, and finally took a high school equivalency exam. College was much easier than high school because no one cared if you went to class. I settled down, married and raised a family, always finding work which gave me the autonomy I craved. On the side, I wrote and got involved with theater. I went through a personal tragedy and had some hard years. On a whim, and maybe out of desperation, some 50 years after the end of WW II, I started to draw again. Two years later I discovered painting, quit my job, and have been working full time and a half as a painter since then.
ARTIST'S STATEMENT
Romania, Romania, a Yiddish song extolling wine, women, song and food, was my Romanian-born father's favorite. I heard it sung often as a child and loved its zest. When I paint and get lucky, that spirit overtakes me. Like dance and music, painting requires rhythm and flow, movement, action and tension. I work to make my paintings twirl and surprise.
There is a Chassidic belief that one can thank the Lord for the gift of life and His bounty by singing, dancing and engaging in joyful creation. This philosophy is a guiding force behind my paintings. My work comes out of a need to create offerings of joy and this in turn is inspired by my experiences of the Sabbath and Festivals. The spirit behind those special times is universal.
As a child, I was enchanted by folk and fairy tales, and folk music. As a teacher of young children I used this material extensively. Now, as a painter I concentrate on folk themes. Currently, I currently work with scenes from the Arctic and the performance world.
I recently returned from India where I encountered carnival scenes in which the array of color was extraordinary. Since then, color has taken on new dimensions for me and has led to new explorations a process that will likely last a lifetime.
Our Art Gallery also has work by Reverend Howard Finster, Inez Nathaniel Walker, William Edmondson, Thornton Dial, Missionary Mary Proctor, Miz Thang, Nancy Valelly, R A Miller, Jimmy Lee Sudduth, Mose Tolliver, folk pottery and all the great outsiders new or old.
Any and all sales are final - no refunds.
|
my cart
