Saturday, November 28, 2009

Clothespins and Crabb

One evidence of the true artist is the transformation of ordinary things into little fragments of beauty.

David Starrett paints each of his wooden clothespins with a different design, each a variation of his mascot, the fox.

A left-handed painter, he thinks big. He came up with this prototype for a large oil palette, though he works more often in watercolor.

He taught for many years in the Los Angeles area at Otis, Valley College, and Art Center.

When he visited in 1990, he posed for Lee Crabb, the malcontent and schemer in Dinotopia: a Land Apart from Time. But in truth he has a heart of gold.

Previously: The Real Lee Crabb

7 comments:

Jill said...

De nada por mi visita

Steve said...

David seems like a fun person to know. Anyone who paints "ebullient" on a clothespin qualifies as interesting.

Really liked your first sentence, "...ordinary things into fragments of beauty." And, of course, it's great to see wood clothespins reappear on the blog.

Wonder if David will go see "Fantastic Mr. Fox"...

Daniel.Z said...

What a marvelous palette, doubling as a shield against dragons and hordes of undead.

The romantic query letter and the happy-ever-after said...

Yours is a talent I envy. Thanks for sharing and all the very best.

E J Zyla = ▲₣ΙŁĶΔ ▲ said...

I always thought that Lee Crabb was a little like Rutger Hauer...

Ashleigh Davidson said...

I love the clothespin picture!! That photo in itself is a piece of art!

sharewolf said...

I took a class with David Starrett back in 2003. He was such a fun person and shared so much insight with his students. Truly an unforgettable artist and teacher!