Dear Friends- Greetings from ABU FED- with the blessings of my most benevolent government I will continue to paint these flights of fancy and to savor your comments. Thank you, Gracias, Grazie, Dankeshon, Shie- Shie, Shukran, Merci.
Dear Friends- Greetings from ABU FED- with the blessings of my most benevolent government I will continue to paint these flights of fancy and to savor your comments. Thank you, Gracias, Grazie, Dankeshon, Shie- Shie, Shukran, Merci.
Thanks again for your support and comments! Kudos to my sister that they eventually reach me here at the bottom of the sea. Some of you already seem like old friends and I always seek out your opinions- though frankly- I think that you are too easy on me.
A couple of comments wondered at the "Story" behind PAX AMERICANA. No one mentioned the dollar sign $ motif.
I am also proud of the title "Canis Ex Machina", which of course is derived from "Deus Ex Machina". And also, in English, Dog is God spelled backwards and the painting is a comment on cloning- playing God- bringing forth Dogs from machines.
-Henry David
Does it really matter what I meant when I painted it? Or is it more important what you see in it? Each should be a meditation. There is no precise meaning- only a departure point. Here are a few:
1: INCUBUS The male sexual spirit that visits women in their dreams.
2: CEREAL KILLER A play on Andy Warhols' soup cans, the complete title is Cereal Killer- Prisoner of Consumer Culture.
3: DEPERSONALIZATION The reverse of people without clothes- clothes without people. A social comment on appearances.
4. REQUIEM (FOR CULTURAL DIVERGENCE) That diversity grows in isolation and becomes lost in the synthesis of contact.
5. RAINING BABIES The beauty of children and the threat of overpopulation.
6. THERE GOES THE NEIGHBORHOOD The Walmart effect and the destruction of Main St. America.
7. EMPTY FRUIT Anticipation is greater than Realization
8. BLOWN AWAY, BY THE WINDS OF CHANGE This is my 9/11 painting.
9. PIGGY BACK This one is about people trapped in their self concepts, united by circumstances in competition with others.
10. MIDWAY The city as the "Big" Carnival
11. LEGACY Leaving future generations to clean up the mess
12. ADAMS APPLE Truths within truths. The fruit of the Tree of Knowledge, the cessation of life within the moment that began with that bite, when man became a seeker.
13. 25 CROSSES Is a very personal painting for me. Each cross represents one year of my prison sentence. The man-tree is trying to move ahead but rooted in the rubble of his life- the chasm of past and future- the various implications of the cross: torture, moral judgement- the crisis of personal suffering. Yet, the single leaf at the tip of the man-tree represents life, hope- salvation.
Many of my paintings, still lifes, landscapes, underwater scenes are meant to be eye candy. I sometimes feel that perhaps my style is too broad, but I am not a one trick pony.
I have a confession to make. When the walls and bars close in on me, and the mindless routine seeps into my spirit, I pull out the thumb-worn copies of your comments which I keep in a manila envelope, and read them again.
Happy Holidays!
David
Though I paint with the belief that these images matter, I routinely question the validity of my work. Perhaps this keeps me on my toes. Your comments are welcome encouragement! I would answer each if I could. The opinions that are offered eventually reach me via snail mail (through my sister). I will do my best to answer any specific queries though it requires some patience.
Update- my painting of Adam and Eve was returned to me by my rather small minded censors, and I was required to cover the naughty bits, which of course changes the entire meaning of the painting. I find it rather more socio-political in its current state, so I presume, alls well that ends well. I did however, give Adam and Eve navels. Somehow they just didn't look right without them. - H. David Potwin
Friends,
Unfortunately I am denied computer access. I have never surfed the net or viewed my own website. I recently received a copy from my sister, Cathy, of the comments that have been posted on artwanted.com. I am both pleased and humbled by these comments. Additionally, I am totally ignorant of courtesy or protocol in cyberspace, but I feel compelled to thank you as a community for your interest and encouragement.
I reside in a federal prison in the U.S.A., as I have for the past 14 years. Suffice it to say that I was incarcerated for an unremarkable drug related crime, and given a no-nonsense sentence of 25 years. There is no federal parole system.
I began painting at an early age, and it is through painting that I cope with the unremitting banality of identical days. I am limited in my materials, the size and subject matter by my censors. The other day, for instance, a painting of Adam and Eve (snake, tree- you know the story) was confiscated. I thought it was rather tame, as I had been emulating an italian holy card from my childhood. But alas, Adam and Eve were unclothed, which my censors do not allow. After 14 years, I am somewhat used to this but still push the envelope.
So it is from this crucible that I produce. I am so pleased that my work has found its way to you.-
David Potwin