Catchphrase

Thank you. I did portrait work for 20+ years, traveled often, and met more people than I ever expected to. A few are/were famous, but most weren’t. The most meaningful portraits to me were usually commissioned by hard-working, upper middle clients that often needed to save a bit for the fee. They invested in a way wealthier clients often didn’t. Dartmouth actually forgot to send me an invite to the unveiling if you can believe that, I learned the date when Koop called to ask a question one afternoon. I had two weeks to prepare 5 minutes of remarks, and was slotted to speak after a recorded video Bill and Hillary Clinton sent wishing Dr. Koop a happy 90’th birthday. That’s a hilarious level of pressure for a small, one-person studio. I practiced my remarks over 80 times, and it went perfect, and I was only proud that my awesome wife saw me stick the landing. Im someone that really just wants to be in my small house, with my wife, and kids (1 of 4 still at home), so I find experiences like that exhausting more than anything. I stopped exhibiting in 2013, and stopped taking commissions in 2016, and don’t regret it as it became a life that was just too big at times for who I am. Even w/portrait fees over 20k at the time, I don’t regret it. I know my kids, and many artists can lose that. I’ll always believe that art is beauty, and beauty is a weapon against hate, and it’s a worthy goal to spend a life painting to that end. Big fees and big clients is a different path than that, so I leave that to other painters with the right mindset for that life. Take care.