COUNTRY COURTROOM ART

JUSTICE IS A COLORFUL JOURNEY

The trials held in the rural South always fascinated me even before I read “To Kill A Mockingbird” or saw Atticus magnificently portrayed by Gregory Peck. These courthouses were very accessible, easy to walk to or park nearby if you wanted to watch a classic clash. Most of the time, they were just plain fun.

This painting was done on a commission for a well-known lawyer. It has humor, lots of color and more than anything, it is how I remember these trials. Bloated egos, sleepy judges, bored men and women in the jury box, flags, robes and spectators including me.

Outside there were drugstores with lunch counters where the milkshakes and floats were divine. Sometimes I would see the 12 jurors in a café being watched carefully by a court official.

I plan on some more courtroom scenes soon. Maybe I should watch a few reruns of Andy Griffith as “Matlock” to stir up those creative juices or read a vintage John Grisham novel again.

ELVIS ON CANVASS

ELVIS AT THE FOX THEATER

It’s a king’s birthday. Elvis is celebrated on January 8 and I’m happy to join in the big party. I painted my memory of Elvis at Atlanta’s Fox Theater where I saw him perform in 1966. The impression was mighty and has stayed with me over the years.

The painting is named “The First Time I saw Elvis,” and proved that such moments from the days of innocence are very suitable for folk art paintings. Elvis, after all, shared one thing with me: Both of us were self-taught.

The Fox Theater is better known as The Fabulous Fox. When Elvis took the stage on the day I was there, much of the history of popular music was being born. While rock and roll came from many sources in the South, we all know who put it on the map.

Enjoy this painting just like we all still enjoy the music from the kid from Memphis.

Happy Birthday Wishes, Elvis!

ATLANTA’S OXFORD BOOKS

BEST BOOKSTORE REMEMBERED

By Olivia Thomason

For a few glorious years, I was fortunate to be part of a team that provided books, periodicals, music and celebrities to Atlantans who gathered at a bookstore like no other. Oxford Books had multiple locations, but the two with soul and almost cosmic energy were in Buckhead and Midtown, two areas still thriving.

I painted my memories of this one-of-a-kind bookstore, calling it “The World Comes To Oxford Books.” Included in the painting are different people, a group of folks representing the diversity of cultures Oxford embraced. I wanted to include some of the celebrities I worked with there who came to our bookstore over the years: Julia Child, Dinah Shore, Walter Cronkite, John Grisham, Pearl Bailey, Anthony Hopkins, Captain Kangaroo, Mick Jagger, Mickey Mantle, Jimmy Carter, Lauren Bacall and George Jones. Plus, many more. But they deserve to be on some paintings in the near future.

Now, this painting is on a special wall somewhere in the South. The memories it inspires recall a time when a landmark bookstore called Oxford was a gathering place. If you were alone on Christmas, New Year’s Day or any holiday, we were open. You could hang out and  read, have coffee, eat from the deli, browse and loose those blues.

I miss Oxford Books. And I don’t think I am alone.

I would love to hear about some of your Oxford Books memories: bigoart1@yahoo.com.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!