Mark Ostapchuk

There is an excellent exhibit of abstract paintings by Mark Ostapchuk in the MAEP Gallery of the Minneapolis Institute of Arts.  It's rare to see beautiful, interesting abstract work.  The colors are so rich. Congratulations to this local artist.  It's up until April 1, I can't wait to see them again.

It inspired me to paint this titled "Woven Wall Hanging".

George Morrison

George Morrison told his life story to Margot Fortunato Galt in the book Turning the Feather Around.  He is one of my favorite visual artists.  He was inspired by Lake Superior.  "I saw the seasons coming this year.  Here on the lake, it's so temperate and it's so rich.  Every moment the horizon is present.  The horizon has been an obsession with me for most of my life...  I think of the horizon line as the edge of the world, the dividing line between water and sky, color and texture...  From the horizon, you go beyond the edge of the world to the sky and, beyond that, to the unknown.  I always imagine that I am there.  I like to imagine it is real."

There was a wonderful solo exhibit at the Minnesota Museum of American Art:  Horizon: Small Painting Series, 1980-1987.  The many paintings, only about 6" x 14", were masterpieces.  All referenced the sky, water and shore of Lake Superior.  Always the horizon line about one quarter of the way down from the top.  I never thought such small paintings could be so powerful.

Reservoir Woods Park

There is a secret forest in Roseville.  The 120 park is home to a new water reservoir for St. Paul and a nice stand of red pine trees.  After taking a walk there, I decided to paint an impression of the tall, straight pines trees.

Road Trip

A visit to the 1968 exhibit at the Minnesota History Center got me thinking about what I was doing back then. In 1968 I was living in Colorado Springs. I remember the drive from Colorado Springs up to the Denver airport to pick up a copy of the New York Times. My friend, Peter Lehmann, had grown up in New York City and couldn't stand to be without the Sunday Times. In 1968 you couldn't get the New York Times Sunday edition until Monday afternoon in Colorado Springs. Well, this necessitated what would become the weekly trip to Denver to get the paper. The first car I owned was a 1960 VW beetle (the little yellow buggy). It had a 36 hp engine, no gas gauge and a wooden 2x4 for a back bumper. It did have a reserve tank if you ran out of gas, so you could just turn the valve under the dashboard and you had another gallon to get to the nearest gas staion. On these weekly trips to the airport Peter seemed to be fortified by drinking strong Medaglio D'Oro coffee and smoking unfiltered French Gaulois cigarettes. This car also made a memorable trip to Chicago with Peter. We had to post bail at the Cook County jail for Terry Miller who had been arrested for protesting during the Democratic National Convention. As my short term memory is diminishing, my recollection of events 44 years ago seems to becoming more vivid.