I like to fly into Chicago and spend a few days exploring the city before we head into MKE. Chicago has proven to be a big inspiration for my paintings and I was able to exhibit and sell a number of my artworks at @theotherartfair in Chicago a few years back. My latest Chicago inspired painting to find a new home is my gouache on paper "Green Mill". It arrived safely this week and will be part of a private Chicago collection of artworks inspired by Chicago's answer to the Moulin Rouge in Paris - The Green Mill. The jazz infused nightclub used to cover a whole city block but was downsized quite a bit in its speakeasy days during Prohibition. Yes, one of Al Capone's crew was a part owner in that era and you can still sit in Al Capone's private booth. But for me, the most exciting part of the Green Mill's rich history is the musical echoes of all the greats who have played in the club. Billie Holiday, Tommy Dorsey, Sophie Tucker, Clifford Jordan, Benny Goodman, John Bany, Bernard “Pretty” Purdie, Michael Jones, Chris Foreman, and @kurtelling . #art#contemporaryart#chicago#jazz#music#greenmill#saxophone
"We Resist"
Jim Moginie: " The history of resistance should be taught at school. Without it,
we wouldn't have made the progress we have. The Freedom Ride and Rosa Parks
turned the spotlight onto racial issues, which then changed. John Lennon and
Yoko Ono's 'War Is Over If You Want It' campaign, hand in hand with the fallout
of the Kent State shootings and worldwide mass demonstrations ended the
Vietnam War. Suffragettes marched for women's rights and undertook hunger
strikes, which both Gandhi in India and Irish Nationalists undertook to achieve
self-sovereignty. These people were brave enough to ignore the conventional
orthodoxy of the time and speak out, often risking their lives in the process. The
irony is that successful protesters never worked alone-they were part of
strategic, highly connected networks."
‘We Resist’
(Written by Jim Moginie)
Putting flowers into guns
This is not the summer of love
Throwing tea into the sea
Indigenous apology
Only if
We resist
It’s a storm without end
Where’s the lighthouse? where’s a friend
Come to think
It can’t last
Only if
We resist
Free market and labour rights
Women’s vote and hunger strikes
War is over in times square
Please don’t say that nobody cares
Standing up to those who sell fear
With a polite insistence to hear
Only if
We resist
It’s a storm without end
Where’s the lighthouse? where’s a friend
Come to think
It can’t last
Only if
We resist
#midnightoil#resist#weresist
My father in law Ralph Heilemann is in hospice care at home with my sister in law in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. As Dad Heilemann gets ready to move on to another form, space, or place — I wanted to post this highly fictionalized tale of his US Navy days that I wrote for his 90th Birthday.
Fair winds and following seas, shipmate. We have the watch.
MarySue Heilemann with her dad Ralph Heilemann — August 2021
Mission Classified. Possibly originating from the harbor of Yokosuka, near Yokohama just outside of Tokyo, in post World War II Japan on Christmas Eve.
Official Mission Logs Redacted by order of Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP) General MacArthur, Acting Headquarters, Dai Ichi Life Insurance Building, Tokyo.
The United States occupation was in full swing and Ralph Heilemann was there. As an electrician onboard a United States Navy cruiser on a hush-hush mission to map the entirety of the Japanese coastline, Seaman Heilemann was deep into the electronic guts of his naval warship. Or was he already an Ensign — difficult to tell from the still hidden logs of his mission.
A long way from Milwaukee but close to Akihabara, Ralph Heilemann knew that he had to replenish his electronic stores before setting off for more remote harbors. Skilled at bartering from his days on the farm in Helenville, Wisconsin — Seaman Heilemann gathered his Naval rations and exchanged them for much more than a bag of beans. Dodging the white striped helmets of the United States Military Police and with Transistor Tubes in hand, Heilemann skulked his way back on board his ship rocking gently in the grey night. Close by, the giant Buddha of Kamakura stood watch as it had for hundreds of years.
Gregg Chadwick — Buddha of Kamakura, 36"x48" oil on linen 2010
Morale was low onboard ship and among the defeated Japanese populace. Rations were cut, food was scarce, water was hoarded. But a desire to keep living still beat in the hearts of all in this lackluster Christmas season. Somehow Heilemann knew that this Xmas was up to him. Tele-typed from high command perhaps? Or whispered along the docks at night? Or maybe Nat King Cole had slipped a recording to the ship’s crew before it set sail. (https://youtu.be/jcttnJQBzQ0) But that cold Japanese night much more than sweet potatoes would be roasting. Heilemann had chestnuts and musical notes in store.
With bartered electronic parts in hand, Heilemann slipped into the conning tower of his ship and relayed a hot wire to his newly acquired turntable. Levels were set on high. He barred the door to keep prying eyes away and set the needle on a spinning platter. With a hiss and a scratch, a voice burst forth across the bay. To this day some say it sounded like a choir of angels:
“Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jack Frost nipping on your nose, Yuletide carols being sung by a choir, And folks dressed up like Eskimos.”
Before the second verse, the Lieutenant was banging on the door. But the music played on across the harbor. Many say it grew louder -
“Everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe, Help to make the season bright. Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow, Will find it hard to sleep tonight.”
Before the third verse, the Commander was banging on the door. And the music played on across the harbor. Many say it grew even louder -
“They know that Santa’s on his way; He’s loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh. And every mother’s child is going to spy, To see if reindeer really know how to fly.”
Before the fourth verse, the Captain was banging on the door. And the music played on across the harbor. Many say it grew even louder -
“And so I’m offering this simple phrase, To kids from one to ninety-two, Although it's been said many times, many ways, A very Merry Christmas to you”
And after the final verse, the Admiral was on the horn. “Keep that music playing Heilemann”, he said. And many say it grew even louder as everyone on shore and onboard ship sang together.
All I know is that Ralph Heilemann needs to keep on singing. Keep playing that music Dad! Happy 90th Birthday!
Gregg Chadwick, I Saw the Figure 5 in Gold (Ralph Heilemann — Madison, Wisconsin) 18"x9"oil on linen 2008
In an auspicious kick off to the lunar new year, @Singulart has included Year of the Tiger (Sumatran Tiger — CJ) in their new Year of the Tiger collection. This oil on linen painting is the first in a series of artworks depicting the characters in the Chinese Zodiac using animals in the Los Angeles Zoo as models and inspiration. The model for Year of the Tiger is the Sumatran Tiger named CJ. Sumatran Tigers are severely endangered in the wild and need our help so they do not become extinct.
I first became aware of the fragile nature of our planet as an elementary school student. For Christmas one year, I asked my parents for the book “Wildlife in Danger” published by the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) They are still an important organization providing information, plans, and hope for our endangered earth. Worried about the environment as a kid, I drew pictures of animals constantly. Now, I am creating paintings that shed light on climate change, the beauty of the natural world, and our place with other species. Year of the Tiger was first exhibited at The Other Art Fair in Los Angeles at Barker Hangar in September 2021 and continues to uphold the spirit of those born under the tiger’s sign as we move into 2022.
Pictured: Gregg Chadwick Year of the Tiger (Sumatran Tiger — CJ) 40" x 40 oil on linen 2021
Honored that my painting, Promenade, is included in the new Art for Someone You Love collection on Saatchi Art curated by Erin Remington (Assistant Curator at Saatchi Art). Erin writes,"Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, Lee Krasner and Jackson Pollock, Jacob Lawrence and Gwendolyn Knight––art history is full of extraordinary and remarkable love stories. Discover a new work in this collection of artworks inspired by passion, love, and all things romance."
Collectors With Their New Painting at The Other Art Fair, Barker Hangar 2018
Gregg Chadwick
Love In a Blue Time 7"x5" oil on panel
Private Collection, Los Angeles, California
I enjoy painting couples. I continue to create a series of artworks depicting partners caught in moments of intimacy.
Gregg Chadwick The Runners 5"x5" oil on panel 2018 Private Collection, Los Angeles
With Valentine's Day coming up I would like to remind you that commissions are available for me to paint you and your loved one. Please contact me at greggchadwick@icloud.com for details. I like to make my small 7"x5"oil on wood panel paintings easily available so they are affordably priced.
Gregg Chadwick Timeless 7"x5" oil on panel 2019 Private Collection, Virginia
I am spending this January afternoon looking back at my art and travels while listening to Walter Martin's new song The Bear. Walter grew up in Washington DC and formed his first band at 11 with future Jonathan Fire*Eater lead vocalist Stewart Lupton who died in 2018. (More on Stewart Lupton in a Speed of Life post from 2004 here.) In 1993 Jonathan Fire*Eater was formed in New York City where Stewart Lupton and Walter Martin and friends had moved for college. When Stewart left the band in 1998, Walter Martin put together the Walkmen with other remaining members. Stereogum reports today - "Ever since the Walkmen embarked on their hiatus, several of the band’s members have had prolific solo careers. But none of them have churned out music at quite the pace of Walter Martin. Today, Martin’s announced his sixth solo album in under a decade, The Bear. It’s out at the end of March." I've had the title track on repeat for the last hour. Haunting and inspiring.
Thanks to Montana Avenue for sharing my painting Wings of Desire: Inspiration can be found anywhere, thank you Gregg Chadwick for sharing this stunning painting and your thoughts behind it
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'As 2021 shifts to 2022, I think of years passing like film titles shifting on theater marquees. With that thought, on the day we lost Betty White at 99, I am posting my painting "Wings of Desire". In the spirit of writers Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Salman Rushdie, a bit of magical realism often finds its way into my paintings. In memory of Bruno Ganz and in homage to one of my favorite films by Wim Wenders, my oil on linen painting "Wings of Desire" depicts one of my favorite angels hovering by the Aero Theatre in Santa Monica.'
I am posting an online readable copy of Art Spiegelman's Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic novel Maus in response to the ridiculous decision by the McMinn County Board of Education in Tennessee who voted 10-0 to remove the book from the eighth-grade English language arts curriculum saying without realizing the horrible irony that the graphic novel should be replaced, if possible, with another book without content deemed objectionable. The Holocaust is arguably the most objectionable violence ever taken against fellow humans by a despotic regime.
Maus recounts the horrifying experiences of Art Spiegelman's father during the Holocaust, in which he depicts Jews drawn as wide-eyed mice and Nazis as menacing cats. Spiegelman shakes us awake as he depicts the unspeakable through the language of cartoons and graphic novels. Maus is a story of survival and a study of the legacy of trauma.
Maus is presented here for readers of all ages. Welcome.
1. The decision of a Tennessee county school board to ban Maus from the classroom is not an isolated incident
It is part of a much broader effort to censor history and literature being packaged under euphemisms like "parents rights"
This is a really powerful thread about Maus. What it is, what it’s about and the fundamental and intrinsic Jewishness of the narrative. And why you don’t replace it. https://t.co/HMfKKbxaWz
— The Martin Luther King, Jr. Center (@TheKingCenter) January 27, 2022
Today is Holocaust memorial day. The genocide of Jews, as well as mass killings of Roma and other minorities, during World War II is a brutal reminder of what hatred and prejudice can lead to. We must never let it happen again. We must never forget. pic.twitter.com/9dJK32cG7D
It's never been a good idea to bet against America. And, there's nothing we can't do if we do it together. We are stronger today than we were a year ago.
Watch our new video on the first year of the Biden-Harris Administration.
In his inaugural address one year ago today, @POTUS committed to “press forward with speed and urgency, for we have much to do in this winter of peril and possibility.” In the year since, he and the @VP have made significant progress in the face of enormous challenges. pic.twitter.com/5YFbMnw3Pg
