In the Presence of Masters

There is something very attractive about people who have achieved a high level of mastery of a skill. Americans are notoriously star struck by those who have achieved great success, whether in sports, entertainment, or the arts. Celebrity has its allure certainly, but there is something compelling, even seductive, about those who have mastered their craft and do it very, very well.

In 1975, as a student in the Department of Arts and Architecture at Penn State, I had the opportunity to participate in a summer program which paid homage and offered opportunities to attend classes with some remarkable artists. It was my first encounter with distinguished artists and it was transformative. During classes with Lee Krasner and Alice Neel I was very aware that these were people who had done something few can do - they gave full reign to their passions for art and they did not stop. Despite everything, and in their cases that included no small amount of gender bias, they kept going and succeeded.

Once I entered the working world, my painting suffered and, eventually, I gave it up. When I moved to Gloucester and became involved with the local art scene I heard about a program called Tithing Our Talents. Artists of distinction, particularly Betty Lou Schlemm, A.W.S., D.F., contributed their talent to teach anyone willing to pay for the classes to raise money for causes they believed in. Despite not having painted in close to 20 years, I signed up, bought watercolors and began to paint again. It was both exciting and frustrating.

For six years I participated in the Tithing Our Talents workshops and, as a board member of the North Shore Arts Association, helped organize the first Tithing Our Talents held there. It was an exciting experience. What always impressed me during these classes was the level of excitement and joy that the participants found in having the opportunity to work directly the distinguished artists who volunteered their time to teach, encourage, critique, and support. What I learned is that these people truly are remarkable, not only because they have attained a very high level of skill but because they love what they do so much that they want to support aspiring artists to the best of their ability. And their ability is considerable.

This week the NSAA sponsored its first Master Class Workshops. For three days the building was filled - packed - with the most enthusiastic participants imaginable who came, with their paints and their easels and notebooks and lunches, to spend a few days with distinguished artists. Despite a nor’easter that lashed the harbor with stinging rain and formidable winds, these painters poured into the building bubbling with excitement and enthusiasm.

The Masters themselves were a distinguished lot: Charles Movalli, Dale Ratcliff, Marilyn Swift, and Frank Federico. They began each day with a demonstration of their technique and then spent the rest of the day circulating among students helping them with their paintings. You could feel the excitement the minute you walked into the building. It was thrilling.

There is an expression noblesse oblige - “nobility imposes obligation”, if one is particularly gifted in any way there is an attendant responsibility to respect that gift by sharing it with others. The Master teaching this week, like those Masters who benefitted my life, are actively honoring that obligation and, therein, compounding the reasons they are so deserving of respect. It is a beautiful thing to be in the presence of.

Side Note: I was told yesterday that the portrait artist Lenice Strohmeier did of me that I wrote about in Encounters with My Face, has been awarded Second Place at the Beverly Guild of Artists current exhibition. Congratulations to Lenny for her accomplishment.

Thanks for reading.