Paintings bring back memories to me, and not always my own works. Sometimes another artist’s painting will stir a personal memory. A fellow artist’s painting of a bus stop in Ukraine sparked a memory of my oldest brother taking me with him downtown to turn our paper route money in. I remember getting on the bus for free and grabbing a window seat, while my brother paid his fare. The bus filled up the closer we got to town.
Getting off at Galena, we walked to the Beacon News building where we waited in line with other boys from across town to turn in the money collected from our paper route. I remember those trips from before my oldest brother, Mike, was stricken with polio. Polio not only changed things for my oldest brother, but for our entire family.
Mike would also take me with him to check out books at the library. This is one way I got my interest in art. Mike would take me upstairs where the floor was glass and the art books were found.
Flipping through the pages, I would sit on the floor looking at the pictures the great illustrators painted for ads and stories in such magazines as The Saturday Evening Post, Boy's Life and Life Magazine. The best-of-the-best Illustrators made it into those books. Science books were Mike’s interest. He would check out a half dozen and have them all read in a week. The first movie he took me to was about men from outer space coming to earth. Gave me nightmares for days. I tried to remember those great illustrations from the library, but all I could picture in my head were men from Mars biting Earth people heads off.
Fortunately, Indians quickly became my first favorite subject, putting an end to people eaters - until Purple People Eaters made the top ten music list...
