Speed of Life

by Gregg Chadwick Gregg Chadwick A Walk With Ganesh 72"x84" oil on linen 2005 Recently during an extended visit in Thailand, I toured the elephant parks in the mountains north of Chiang Mai. Each day the elephants are brought down to the river and bathed. As I watched these daily baths, I knew that I needed to paint these moments- the elephants, the mahouts, the river, the water, the light, the color, the heat and the air. Ganesh- (in the Hindu pantheon, known as a remover of obstacles) provided an apt title. Hokusai "Blind Men and Elephant" from the Hokusai manga series ("Random Sketches"),  volume VIII, Pages 13,14 1818 After viewing "A Walk With Ganesh", Julie Weiss brought in a treasured book on the Japanese artist Hokusai opened to Hokusai's manga -"Blind Men and Elephant". This image wonderfully illustrates Buddha's parable: Once, a group of blind men, who generally got about by holding ...

Dear Friends and Colleagues: The devastation in New Orleans and the gulf cities is almost incomprehensible. New Orleans is one of the richest cultural centers in the country. It is home to hundreds of musicians, visual artists and theatre professionals. Yet New Orleans also has one of the highest poverty rates in the country. Like many of us, these artists live gig to gig, check to check. And these artists are now dispersed throughout the country. I’ve been in touch with several colleagues from New Orleans and while they may be physically okay, they are trying to figure out the day-to-day reality of their displacement. This day-to-day may well turn into months if not years. The national arts community is mobilizing to help with this crisis. If you would like to help, the recommendation is to give to the Red Cross relief fund and then give a little more to the artists affected by Katrina. The Southern Arts Federation has established an artists’ and arts organization fund, which wil...

Gregg Chadwick Belle Ville 11"x11" oil on linen 2005 NBC's Dateline producers movingly combined scenes of the destruction and the suffering of the victims of Hurricane Katrina with Bruce Springsteen's song "My City of Ruins" at the close of their look last night (Thursday, 9/1) on the hurricane devastation in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. It is a brillant, sad, and stirring song, which Springsteen originally wrote for the economically-gutted hometown of his imagination: Asbury Park, N.J. It changed meanings when he included it in his performances after the World Trade Center's destruction on 9/11/01 and on his album exploring the pain of that day, "The Rising." On screen last night his words and somber chords honored yet another group of sufferers who have seen their city ruined. And its our city too, our belle ville, our most European and artistically fecund city that has been drowned. It is our neighbors who have died or had their live...