Speed of Life

by Gregg Chadwick My Uncle Jake looms large in my life. And not only because he has the build of a defensive tackle on the San Francisco 49ers. When Jake walks into a room he fills the scene like James Gandolfini in the Sopranos. Then the stories begin.  Jolly Green Giant Jake sets the scene. Imagine he is on a covert mission during the Vietnam War. President Nixon has launched a secret bombing campaign in Cambodia and Laos. From March 18, 1969 until May 26, 1970, code name Operation Menu targeted resupply areas that the North Vietnamese and their allies the National Liberation Front and the Viet Cong were using as bases of attack against the South Vietnamese and their American allies.  Heavy B-52 bombers from the US Air Force carpet bombed the Laotian and Cambodian borders in an attempt to interdict  North Vietnamese  supply lines.  Airman Jacob J Desch (Vietnam Era Photo) Airman Jake Desch was deployed in Thailand  where the massive B-52s were stati...

This is a BFD. https://t.co/L0sh8ULo4T — Barack Obama (@BarackObama) August 16, 2022

Bill Evans , known for his work with Miles Davis was born on this day in 1929. Evans received 7 Grammy's and 31 nominations for his work as a jazz pianist and composer. Steve Silberman writes that " E vans once told a friend that a musician should be able to maintain focus on a single tone in his mind for at least five minutes—and in playing like this, he achieved a nearly mystical immersion in the music: a state of pure, undistracted concentration. Even before writers like Jack Kerouac and Gary Snyder made Buddhism a subject of popular fascination in America, Evans saw parallels between meditative practice and the keen, alert state that jazz improvisation demands, when years of work on perfecting tone and technique suddenly drop away and a direct channel opens up between the musician’s brain and his or her fingers." Bill Evans wrote Waltz for Debby for his niece, and it's a celebration of life. More on Bill Evans at - Broken Time https://culture.org/broken-time/ ...

Los Angeles Poet Laureate Lynne Thompson and former Anaheim Poet Laureate Grant Hier will host A Day of Poetry in Los Angeles which will include readings by the former Los Angeles Poet Laureate, Luis J. Rodriguez, and the current Los Angeles County Youth Poet Laureate, Salome Agbaroji, as well as sixty other local poets.

  Thinking of Salman Rushdie today after he was attacked at the Chautauqua Institution this morning. I had the privilege to meet Salman at an event in Beverly Hills in 2008 that was moderated by Carrie Fisher. This is a photo I created after meeting this amazing man. A card of my painting "A Walk With Ganesh" sits on the table next to him. On this  #worldelephantday  I wish for Ganesh to lift Salman up in his current struggle to survive and heal. Hate has no place in our world. "A poet's work," he answers. "To name the unnamable, to point at frauds, to take sides, start arguments, shape the world and stop it from going to sleep." pic.twitter.com/6ZzbXZbe7j — Rabih Alameddine (@rabihalameddine) August 13, 2022 "We must work to overturn the false narratives of tyrants, populists, and fools by telling better stories than they do, stories in which people want to live."- Salman Rushdie https://t.co/9IYojUUGYT pic.twitter.com/g1kzyU...

BY   MARYAM HOSSEINZADEH   ,   AUGUST 9, 2022 The Metro E Line (Expo) has newly installed digital screens on its station platforms, and in addition to Metro customer information and third-party advertising, the new amenity also features Metro Art programming.      Gregg Chadwick, “Frida Cano (E Line)” on E Line (Expo) digital screen The digital screens are the latest location where riders can view portraits from Metro Art’s multi-site  We Are…  rider portrait exhibition. Community art advisors worked with Metro Art to ensure that the commissioned portraits displayed on the new screens each have a link to the neighborhoods served by E Line (Expo).    Here are the nine portraits featured on the E Line (Expo) digital screens:  Susu Attar,  Self Portrait with Ancient Ones     Gregg Chadwick ,  Frida Cano (E Line)      Sheila Karbassian,  Beautiful Santa Monica     Miles Lewis,  A Walk and Talk    ...

On International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples, we recognize Indigenous knowledge, culture and practices that can inform the way we address climate, foster more inclusive communities, and live up to our responsibilities to future generations. pic.twitter.com/jcFgTLwDr7 — Secretary Deb Haaland (@SecDebHaaland) August 9, 2022

Gregg Chadwick Vantage Point (Chicago Theatre) 30"x22"gouache on paper 2022 Private Collection Bloomington, Illinois Day turns towards night on State Street in Chicago. Above us glows the marquee of the timeless Chicago Theatre. Built in 1921, the building just celebrated its centennial last year. I am reminded that as a child - my father, a career military officer, taught me to be aware of my surroundings. "Always look up," my Dad would say. And as an artist, I heed his words and look up to see what is above.

PASSED: The Inflation Reduction Act! pic.twitter.com/WOfGgKYziy — Senate Democrats (@SenateDems) August 7, 2022 This afternoon I cast the tie-breaking vote on the Inflation Reduction Act. This bill will help lower inflation and the cost of living for millions of American families—lowering the cost of health care, prescription drugs, and everyday energy costs. — Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) August 7, 2022 https://t.co/fq3zdIIFTy — Gregg Chadwick (@greggchadwick) August 7, 2022 "This is an example of leaders leading." – @VP Kamala Harris leaving the Senate chamber after casting the tie-breaking vote to pass the Inflation Reduction Act. Honored to be witnessing history in the making! pic.twitter.com/cOAWLF5r2m — Rodrigo Santos Legaspi (@rodrigoslegaspi) August 7, 2022

Long time readers know that I am inspired by the life and work of David Hockney. My thoughts on Hockney's 2005 exhibition at LA Louver can be found here .   I wrote then and still feel that Hockney, throughout his career, has been as interested in how we see as in what we see. Light, color and questions on space and time have come to the forefront in both physics (light has become the cornerstone of reality and space and time have become observer-dependent) and the art of David Hockney. This new retrospective of David Hockney's art at the Kunstmuseum Luzern looks like a must see.  From Vernissage TV: "The Kunstmuseum Luzern is currently showing the first comprehensive exhibition of David Hockney's works in Switzerland. The retrospective presents works from 1954 to 2018. Titled Moving Focus , the show includes his experimental early works, his famous pool paintings and double portraits, photographic works, and his more recent landscapes both in acrylic and as digital an...

 by Gregg Chadwick My brother Kent called me last night while he was dining with our parents because he had a question for me. “Do you remember the name of the French restaurant in La Jolla where they would not serve me Cherries Jubilee for dessert  because I was underage?” We laughed and chatted for a while and all I could come up with was Chez something. Fortified by a double espresso this morning I began to think about that meal and the wonderful times we have had as a family dining out, traveling, and learning about art, history, culture, and food.  My first thought was to check in our collection of matchboxes from our travels over the years. I vaguely remembered a picture of the Eiffel tower on the matchbox and maybe the menu. It was the early 1970’s so likely there was a hand drawn feel to the menu and signage. I was studying French in Junior High and my brother was learning it in High School so we had few problems with the menu that night. We had visited Paris with...