Just as the period of time between posts has flown by, so has the time since my boyhood buddy, Jay Urban, and I ventured into the world of art. In the summer of 1953 two recent high school graduates hopped on a bus in search of fame and fortune. Their ride took them from the far, far northwest side of Chicago to the wonders of "Downtown". With the help of a kind "older" lady (she was probably in her forties) at the Artist Guild of Chicago, Jay and I got jobs as apprentices at real live professional art studios. Now, more than fifty years later, we're both retired. Jay resides in Richmond, Illinois and I'm in Fennimore, Wisconsin, both a far cry from the hustle and bustle of "Downtown". Our noontime strolls up and down "The Magnificent Mile" have become hikes in the woods and drives down rustic roads. Even though, over the years we've drifted apart geographically, we both retained our passion for things of beauty, flowers and forests, birds and animals and a deep seated love of "cool" cars. (I think that if you gathered together the cars that we owned over the years, you would have quite valuable collection) As I look back, I realize that that bus in 1953 really took us on the "ride" of our lives. It brought us into a fifty year fantasy and it hasn't reached the "end of the line" yet. Thanks to the "Electronic Age" we stay in touch with email. Almost daily Jay sends me one of his artistic creations usually accompanied by a poem written by a friend of his. The one he sent today is what prompted me post this little essay. He summed up his career over that fifty year span in these words and pictures.
In case the text isn't legible, it says,
"fifty year evolution began with the simplicity of graphite pencils... next came a palette of soft pastel chalks... then on to vibrant magic markers... and progressing to the digital wizardry of camera and mouse... all lovingly caressed by this humble hand through a lifetime of artistic expression.
And there's more to come"!
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