Father And Than Some

Scot came to the role of fatherhood reluctantly. We were together some fifteen years before our son James was born. I “turned up pregnant” at 37. Scot was not real pleased when the concept of fatherhood turned into a reality and then suddenly that reality became the main course of our dinner, subject matter-wise. But once he’d signed on, he was marvelous.

Scot was the most attentive of fathers. I’d bet that James and his father got to spend more time together, in the roughly sixteen years they had together, than most kids do in a regular lifetime. In that way, we were blessed. The reluctant dad turned into super dad, and then some.

Today’s art is a hand-colored etching. This piece was one of a series of miniature etchings Scot started in the late 1980's, after we’d seen an exhibition of Indian miniatures at the Asian Art Museum (which then shared the building with the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park at the time). Going small seemed to be a good move for Scot. It was also at this time that he was spending a lot of time with the de Grassi collection of Paul Klee’s work at the SF Museum of Modern Art. Scot adored the work of Paul Klee, who most often worked on a relatively small scale too.

At the point that we were discovering how well this intimate format worked with his imagery, we were also considering an entry into the world of the street art fair—which probably still happen in one Bay Area neighborhood or another, every weekend—all summer long. These little etchings seemed like they would make a good street fair “ware.”

Turns out that a lot of people have heard the word etching, but don’t really know how an etching is actually made. Scot had a miniature press that he started taking to the shows. He would pull prints right there in front of the booth. People were fascinated. Later, the addition of color, through hand coloring, and especially the naming of each piece, gave these little gems a lot of appeal. Today’s piece is called “Father and Son Reunion.” Scot and his dad definitely shared a profile.

The music today is a Basement Collaboration Jam, featuring Mike Stiglitz (the man of many boxes we’ve enjoyed before on this blog). Producing the tract and playing guitar is Jerry Farnsworth. On this track you will hear some lovely bass work, courtesy of our darling, here memorialized Scot Halpin. Also memorialized today, and doing some pretty immortal drumming is Kenny Wright. Kenny was one sweet guy. He was a dear friend, who both comforted and inspired Scot. I'm glad he went after Scot. Sorry about the abrupt beginning to this track. It settles the matter with a really cool ending.