Friend...a tribute....Jo McGarvey

Jo   Oil/Canvas   20 x 10 x 1.5

I believe that it was Andrew Wyeth who said that one can create from love or from hate.  It is indeed strong emotional content that makes for a good painting.  Creating from passion.  For me, anything in between just won't do.  In this case, my painting of Jo is a tribute in love for the friendship that has lasted for ever-so-many years.  Our families were fast friends.  We each had 3 boys who were stair-stepped in ages.  We holiday-ed together.  We played together.  We shared each others'  traumas as well as the triumphs in-between.  And....we cooked together.  Lots of hungry boys.  Lots of cooking.  Our paths have paralleled throughout the years and created braids of time....with some times away from and some times the returning-towards.  But the foundation is always there.  Jo is an accomplished woman and a strong woman.  We seem to be able to read each others' minds at times....the knowing that that is intuitive and yin.  And, so, this portrait is, for me, greater than the sum of its parts.  It is a tribute.  Merry Christmas, my friend.

Entering Shows

Fourteen   pastel/paper   23.5 x 17

Mary in Polka Dots   oil/canvas   30 x 24 x .5

It is difficult to decide which shows to enter. There are so many considerations such as: entry fee, shipping costs, distance to travel and having the appropriated formatted images, as these days, every show seems to have difficult requirements. Usually, the prize money is a consideration. Of course, there is no guarantee of winning a prize, but at least there should be the possibility of recuperating the costs of the entry. But sometimes there is an exception. Two of my works, "Fourteen" and "Mary in Polka Dots" were just shipped to Woodstock, Illinois for "Real People 2008" sponsored by The Old Court House Figurative League. This show just felt right to me. Quite simply, my goal is painting real people. Then, when I took a look at the work of juror Alice White, I was convinced. I was awed by her large canvasses that focus on huge groups of people with lots of interaction. My own work shows solitary figures. I just had a good feeling. The exhibit is August 7 - September 28 at The Old Courthouse Arts Center on Woodstock Square in Woodstock, Illinois.