The Unknown Veteran/Asheville Urban Tour
The Unknown Veteran/Asheville Urban Tour 36x48 Oil 2011
Kudos to Asheville, North Carolina for recognizing and formally apologizing for its role in slavery and racist policies of the past via a resolution for reparations for it’s African American residents. Hopefully, this will bring healing for its residents and be a shining light for other southern cities to follow, although not likely.
Some friends and I did the Asheville Urban Trail in 2010 or 2011. This is a self-guided walking tour for those interested in the city’s art and history. One of the art pieces was an iron bench with a bower of medicinal herbs honoring Asheville resident Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell. Although I found the bench interesting, I was more enamored by the figure sitting on the bench and thought he fit very appropriately on my “urban” tour. It was an older gentleman who obviously felt very comfortable in his skin judging by his fashionable pallet. He sat as if in deep thought with a cigar in one hand and a dollar bill for the bus in the other. Although I am reluctant to ask folk if I can photograph them, I did approach this gentleman for permission. I asked him to pretend that I was not there so that I wouldn’t get a posed photograph.
This gentleman reminded me of my maternal grandfather, Arthur Wright, Sr., who also smoked cigars. You can see my grandfather’s image, Big Daddy, under “Kindred Spirits” in my gallery. Some people ask if it is my late uncle, Rev. Charlie Pugh, who also favored cigars and who did look a little like him. My father, Jimmie Lee Pugh, Sr., also smoked cigars. That’s the beauty of art, I think I was drawn to this gentleman because he reminded me of elders in my life. He was not either of them but an amalgamation of all of them. Although I could never imagine my grandfather, father or uncle at a bus stop, I could imagine all of them smoking a cigar in deep thought. He captured their spirits; and hopefully, the spirit of someone you know.
My subject was very engaging and did not mind me taking photos. He asked where we were visiting from and I found him to be very intelligent. When I later looked at my photos, I noticed his military hat and lanyard and wondered if he were a veteran. Judging by our short conversation and these items, I am willing to bet that he was a vet. I decided to use my photo references for this painting that was completed in 2011. The background is rather cold because I want you to focus on the human in our humanity. If you should recognize this gentleman, please let me know.
This was my first submitted and accepted piece for ArtFields. It was displayed in a Lake City barber shop during the event in 2013 and you would have thought it was a permanent fixture.
