Visit to Gainesville, Georgia

Spirals on Stage
1981
watercolor on paper

A significant amount of my art work is in the collection of The Arts Council at the Smithgall Arts Center in Gainesville, Georgia. I had not seen much of the works on paper since 1986. Among the drawings, prints and watercolors are two lithographs I did when I was 19. Gladys Wyant graciously invited me back to Gainesville for a chance to go through the print drawers. It was intriguing to see things I had made in New York , Germany and my studio on the Neely Farm in Norcross, Georgia. I made a lot of spirals in those days.

Bob Bowden had donated all of these and several large canvases that he bought from me back then. Bob's generosity was widely admired and I was fortunate to benefit from it. Sadly, Bob passed away in 2009 but I had the surprise pleasure of a visit with Shirley Bowden, his wife. Her charm and warmth gave me that rare pleasure of catching up with a friend from the past. Shirley's stories filled in the last few years of their art collecting adventures.

I was able to lay out the pictures across a large conference table and privately take the time to sort out and examine them. One day was not enough. It was the kind of work done by curators and archivists, comparing subjects and recording titles and dates. It was a good day.