Speed of Life

by Gregg Chadwick 100 years ago today, the seminal artist Jacob Lawrence was born in Atlantic City, New Jersey. When Lawrence was in his teens his family moved to Harlem in New York City, where he studied art with Charles Alston at the Harlem Art Workshop. When Lawrence graduated from the American Artists School in New York he became a participant in the WPA Federal Art Project.  The young artist broke new ground in 1941 with The Migration Series which garnered national attention. I find the video below from the Phillips Collection  in which Lawrence discusses The Migration Series  fascinating: During World War II, while in the United States Coast Guard, first as a public relations specialist on the USS Sea Cloud, and then as a combat artist on the USS Gen. Richardson, Lawrence created a series of artworks documenting his vantage point on the war.   Jacob Lawrence No. 2 Control Panel, Nerve Center of Ship, gouache and watercolor on board Co...

Trump cynically cut Obamacare outreach by 90% so that Americans won't know these dates. It is up to us to spread this critical information. Folk's lives depend upon it. November 1, 2017: Enrollment for 2018 health insurance begins. December 15, 2017: Enrollment for 2018 health insurance ends. Please share #ACA enrollment deadlines for health insurance. More at: https://www.healthcare.gov/blog/common-health-questions-answered/

Simo Hayha would disagree w @realDonaldTrump https://t.co/hr9W9FAnfT 🇫🇮 https://t.co/ZxtOfms92J — Gregg Chadwick (@greggchadwick) August 28, 2017 From SimoHayha.com "In 1939, the Soviet Union attempted to invade Finland. Being a member of the Civil Guard, Häyhä was called into service, serving under the 6th Company of JR 34 on the Kollaa River. Commanded by Major General Uiluo Tuompo, the Finns faced both the 9th and 14th Soviet Armies, and at one point were fighting against as many as 12 divisions - about 160,000 soldiers. Also at one point in the same area, there were only 32 Finns fighting against over 4,000 Soviets! Despite being outnumbered, however, the Finns were still victorious at the end of the day. The invading Soviets weren’t as organized as one would expect: they spoke many different languages, and they weren’t used to the harsh Finnish winters either. In fact, the winter of 1939-40 was very snowy, and had temperatures ranging from -40 to -20 degrees C...

“A truly moral agenda must be anti-racist, anti-poverty, pro-justice, pro-labor, transformative and deeply rooted and built within a fusion coalition.  It would ask of all policy, is the policy Constitutionally consistent, morally defensible and economically sane.  We call this moral analysis and moral articulation which leads to moral activism.”  —Rev. Dr. William, J. Barber, II

Humor Break On a Tough Night https://t.co/DRHwc3PaTW — Gregg Chadwick (@greggchadwick) August 26, 2017 This just instantly made today better... pic.twitter.com/mAnwSqgA5n — Brittlestar (@brittlestar) August 24, 2017

#Eclipse2017 time lapse captured from Easley, South Carolina by Gary McNeillie [6 minutes in 30 seconds] https://t.co/4diLr3jWv7 pic.twitter.com/bXqEZRQ1kb — Massimo (@Rainmaker1973) August 21, 2017 The eclipse over Empire State Building by Gary Hershorn #newyork #nyc

"The world is a dangerous place...not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it" -Albert Einstein In the light of the horrific, fascist, white-supremacist violence against peaceful folks in Charlottesville, Virginia on August 12, 2017, I find this film produced by the US War Department during WWII to be instructive. Clips from the film are appearing on social media sites. The full film is presented here. From IMDB: "Financed and produced by the United States War Department in 1943, and shot at the Warners studio, although it was distributed through all of the major studios' film exchanges and also by National Screen Services free to the theatre exhibitors: A young, healthy American Free Mason is taken in by the message of a soap-box orator who asserts that all good jobs in the United States are being taken by the so-called minorities, domestic and foreign. He falls into a conversation with a refugee ...

Heather Heyer is her name. She was 32 years old. She was murdered on Saturday, August 12th in Charlottesville, VA by Neo Nazis. May she rest in peace. Add your event to stand in solidarity with #Charlottesville : https://t.co/nKSXu3EI2w pic.twitter.com/euaz16RSeo — Indivisible Guide (@IndivisibleTeam) August 12, 2017 Stand in solidarity with #Charlottesville  ! Mr. Trump: A car drove into a crowd, a life was lost. What will it take for you to condemn white supremacy? Speak out. Attend the funeral. — George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) August 12, 2017 Anyone who does not abandon a political party led by a man unable to condemn white supremacists and nazis is without morality or principle. — Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) August 12, 2017 Thank you @RevDrBarber for your courage and leadership! @MSNBC #Charlottesville #NoH8 — Gregg Chadwick (@greggchadwick) August 12, 2017 The case against "many sides." pic.twitter.com/ryohQhs5Vm — Jeet Heer (@HeerJe...

by Gregg Chadwick "Anybody who says politics and music don't mix is, that's just in your face stupid."   – Lucinda Williams Jesse Malin:  Fox News Funk from  Meet Me at the End of the World Jesse Malin's new EP, Meet Me at the End of the World , is out. Produced by Joseph Arthur, this collection of four new songs timely addresses our current Trumpian tribulation and is sparking some major conversations across the music world. Lucinda Williams was so inspired by Malin's Meet Me at the End of the World, that, as  Fran C. Anderson  reports in Rolling Stone, Williams "hopped on the phone with the D Generation frontman ... for a wide-ranging chat about their approach to songwriting, politics, Canadian electro dynamo Peaches, and a possible future collaboration." In their conversation Williams and Malin earnestly conversed about the mix of politics and music in their art. Williams said,"Anybody who says politics and music don't m...

Over the August recess some members will hold "tele-town halls" instead of in-person events. Here's how to make the most of these calls: pic.twitter.com/Olt1hTIQIX — Robert Reich (@RBReich) August 4, 2017

by Gregg Chadwick Today in 1965, Lyndon B. Johnson signed Medicare & Medicaid into law. We must strengthen and expand, not slash, them. pic.twitter.com/0zX6opMpMw — Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) July 30, 2017 Fifty two years ago on July 30, 1965, in a groundbreaking act, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed Medicare and Medicaid into law. Both programs still stand as strong examples of the United States government at its best. Because of LBJ's vision and the thousands of health care activists that laid the groundwork before the bill became law, Medicare and Medicaid have brought high quality, affordable health care to seniors, people with disabilities and qualifying individuals. The 1965 Medicare Act required that hospitals had to desegregate in order to get Medicare money. Medicaid, also, required the desegregation of skilled nursing facilities (SNFs). Both programs pushed the country forward towards a more equitable health care system.  Instead of cutting back or...

Michelle Obama gave the best advice to these college students as part of her @BetterMakeRoom campaign pic.twitter.com/jKbQoxqp16 — NowThis (@nowthisnews) July 29, 2017

 by Gregg Chadwick Good morning Happy weekend pic.twitter.com/bU6Kc42wGO — Rabih Alameddine (@rabihalameddine) July 29, 2017 Rabih Alameddine is a San Francisco based author whose most recent novel, The Angel of History ,  is a masterful act of remembering. The scourge of AIDS ravaged the queer community in the 1980's. Alameddine honors the lost in his book that echoes Mikhail Bulgakov’s satirical, elegiac work The Master and Margarita . For those who have been asking me lately for book suggestions, these are both must reads. Along with his literary work, Alameddine is a master at social media, especially twitter. If you are on twitter, follow Rabih Alameddine now. His feed is full of surprises, especially his engaging threads of artworks. Have a Happy Weekend! Good morning, Velázquez pic.twitter.com/31wBaLrOrP — Rabih Alameddine (@rabihalameddine) July 29, 2017 Saturday Morning at Gregg Chadwick's Studio 

First Reveal - I have been working on this large painting 4.5 feet by 7.5 feet for quite a while now. Great thanks to @SergioArau and @YareliArizmendi for their art and inspiration. In process - "Ask the Dust (Sergio Arau)"  # literature   # art 🎨   # artistsoninstagram   # losangeles

by Gregg Chadwick On this day in 1948, President Truman ended segregation in the United States Armed Forces. Today in a hate filled series of tweets Trump brought it back. Trump's argument against transgender soldiers echoes one used against gays, women and blacks.  Even as I am calling my Senators and engaging in active measures to help preserve our healthcare, I am standing up against Trump's bigotry. Currently, thousands of transgender folks serve proudly among the 1.3 million active-duty members of the United States military. Brave souls who volunteered to put their lives on the line. Today, their commander in chief kicks them to the curb. The scale of this insult should not be underestimated. An unconscionable act by Trump. As the Women's March organization puts it: "The care of trans people is not a "distraction"—it is a human right."  #TransRightsAreHumanRights   Sorry, Donald, tweets do not a policy make. @Mic pic.twitter.com/0vprabrvKn ...

He told ISIS he would rather die than stop dancing. Now he's training and performing in Europe. pic.twitter.com/ENctcJkadi — AJ+ (@ajplus) July 26, 2017

by Gregg Chadwick My paintings  Pink Cadillac (Elvis at Graceland)  and  Memphis Train (Arcade Restaurant)  have just arrived at the L Ross Gallery in Memphis, Tennessee for my latest exhibition. They will join my painting  Suspicion (Elvis Presley)  in the exhibition Elvis Has Left the Building which runs from August 2 - 31. This group show, which has become a notable annual event for the L Ross Gallery, will kick off with an opening reception on Friday, August 4 from 6 – 9 pm. In my recent Clark Hulings Fund podcast with Daniel DiGriz , DiGriz caught me implying that Elvis is alive. On the walls of the L Ross Gallery this August, Elvis does live on, but as Fredric Koeppel writes,"his memory is slowly fading and becoming the stuff of rumor and legend tending toward oblivion." The show title makes this poignantly clear. I have been reading Ray Connolly's new book Being Elvis: A Lonely Life   which deftly examines Elvis' life through the len...

I enjoyed this chat with Stephanie Case. Recorded in my studio, it provides a hint of the theme of compassion that runs through my artwork.  - Thanks for listening.