The painting is Nightfall, by Jeffrey Spalding.
They usually never ask me to do anything much with art (other then make it and teach it). In 2001, they asked me to be a “celebrity curator” of an exhibition at the Art Gallery of Hamilton.
I visited their backrooms, and got to choose what I wanted for a big wall, the “celebrity space”.
I said I wanted to do blue paintings, and they frowned.
I said I was not bound by the burden of art history, they scowled.
I said I only wanted to do paintings by guys named David, they smirked.
I said I only wanted to do paintings by friends, they looked up, and when I said we’ll start with Jeffrey Spalding, they smiled.
Then, I looked at Jeffrey’s Niagara Falls painting “Dark Union”, saw a monochromatic, chiaroscuro type look, and I declared that we would do monochromatic stuff!! They made the sign of the cross and we commenced.
I included, besides Jeffrey; Davis Diao (1969), Michelle Balfe (1978), Charles Emile Jacque (1813-1894) and George Agnew Reid (1860-1947). My talk was in late May, and I had no idea what to say but I’d figure something out by the time I reached it. The show was up most of that summer.
The talk was anticlimactic, as who would come out on a lovely spring night in the middle of the week to hear a guy talk about the wall he put together. There was a lovely family consisting of a father and two kids and a few museum guards, one curator with an assistant and maybe, in hindsight, there may have been a few others.
I don’t remember what I said, but I also answered questions. Thank God for the curator, there was a question or two to answer.
All in all it was great fun, and they even provided me with an honorarium.
Now, on my resume, I can list curator (OK, Guest Curator!).
I visited their backrooms, and got to choose what I wanted for a big wall, the “celebrity space”.
I said I wanted to do blue paintings, and they frowned.
I said I was not bound by the burden of art history, they scowled.
I said I only wanted to do paintings by guys named David, they smirked.
I said I only wanted to do paintings by friends, they looked up, and when I said we’ll start with Jeffrey Spalding, they smiled.
Then, I looked at Jeffrey’s Niagara Falls painting “Dark Union”, saw a monochromatic, chiaroscuro type look, and I declared that we would do monochromatic stuff!! They made the sign of the cross and we commenced.
I included, besides Jeffrey; Davis Diao (1969), Michelle Balfe (1978), Charles Emile Jacque (1813-1894) and George Agnew Reid (1860-1947). My talk was in late May, and I had no idea what to say but I’d figure something out by the time I reached it. The show was up most of that summer.
The talk was anticlimactic, as who would come out on a lovely spring night in the middle of the week to hear a guy talk about the wall he put together. There was a lovely family consisting of a father and two kids and a few museum guards, one curator with an assistant and maybe, in hindsight, there may have been a few others.
I don’t remember what I said, but I also answered questions. Thank God for the curator, there was a question or two to answer.
All in all it was great fun, and they even provided me with an honorarium.
Now, on my resume, I can list curator (OK, Guest Curator!).
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