27 July 2021

 

     I did not sleep to the alarm today.  I did force myself to stay in bed past 3am. 

     I started 20th Century Boy: Notebooks of the Seventies by Duncan Hannah, which are journals, not memoirs, as I previously incorrectly noted.

     Hannah, being a practicing artist in NYC, will cover the scene, I hope, but it is far more encompassing.  Plus I do not think he is a major player in the art world.  Then again, this may be a more realistic view of what it would be like for me trying to be a practicing artist.

     Being an artist, but not one of the select few that history holds in posterity. 

     There are a lot of minor artists who receive mention in history, are collected in museums, and have a collector base, yet are not full blown major names.  I always said if I could get one serious person to collect my art I would be thrilled, but I cannot even get my dad to not give it away.

    He tells me, "We still have the one you did in grade school."

     I believe the rest he donated to St. Vincent DePaul with the Bakhtiari versus bear painting I did.

     While history only saviors a select few, if you are creating, engaged with other creators, getting by, does the rest matter?  You are doing what fuels you to awaken every morning.

     Now let’s get this maquette done so I can bust out those oil paints.

     I received a postcard today from the Portrait Society: Gallery of Contemporary Art.  They received the work Jennie Reno sent them and they would like to do an entire wall of my work for the 2022 show.  It is time to put the peddle to the metal and get work done.

     The maquettes, trial runs, et cetera will still go to Prisoner Express.  Plus whatever else I come up with.

     We had a pretty good storm come through this morning nixing outside morning recreation.  I was able to get out there tonight and run five miles.  It was terribly humid, and I am exhausted.

     I am sure being up since the wee hours of the morning did not help.

     Steve Wankowski was released this morning.  Reggie Wheeler, who works outside the prison gates, saw Steve's wife pick him up.