Comments on: Artist Statement http://elizabethcarrigan.com Celtic and Folk Influenced Art Mon, 13 Oct 2014 14:34:32 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 By: kevin mcdermott http://elizabethcarrigan.com/about/artist-statement/#comment-62 kevin mcdermott Sat, 08 Jun 2013 04:38:14 +0000 http://stephencarrigan.com/blog/?page_id=1583#comment-62 Dear Elizabeth (and Steve)
It was lovely to see you both at Tony’s two weeks ago, although I did little but say “hello/goodbye!” to Steve, and never said a word to you; I did very much enjoy The Sally Gardens, however. From time to time I look in, as I still hope, at some point, you’ll be able to do a portrait of our lovely dog, “Dan” (Daniel O’Connell). We had to put him down two and a half years ago, but he is still very much part of our lives. We had had to put down his only son, “Bob” (Robert Emmett) slightly less than 2 months earlier. Neither was a surprise: Bob had been fighting lymphoma for a few years; Dan was getting up there in years. By the Grace of God, in both instances…we knew that THAT was the day. At the time my father, God rest his soul!, was in the process of heading towards the grave; I was up and down to NY; and it hardly seemed like the time to get another dog…although that would assuredly mean at least one season without a companion afield. But it turned out otherwise: we ended up with a pup from the same breeder, “Tom” — Thomas Francis Meagher, of the Sword — who bids fair to give Dan a run for his money. He’s a very sweet, good dog — afield and at home.

I do wish that things were different and I had more opportunity to make the Press Room session; the few times I was able to make it there were thanks to Marty Stock; but now that he’s moved, there’s really no one from this end of the world on whose rat-track I am. So the chances to see the two of you, and make music with you, will probably be few. But I did want to tell you that I admire your art just as much as I did when I first saw it. I hope you will — and perhaps are?— painting again: but, if you never put brush to canvas again, God forbid!, you have been given a gift few are given. We all must come to grasp that we are not what we do: we are what we are. I am not a singer — I am a certain person who has been given the gift of singing; that could be taken away from me at any time. I would still be the same person. You are not a painter — but a particular, and wonderful, person who has been given the gift of painting, and singing — whether you can, or can’t do those things is hardly a trivial matter (as we both know). But it is so important to recognize that the issue of whether we can, or can’t, has absolutely nothing to do, essentially, with who we are.

I’ll look forward to the next time we’re all together. If and when you can do Dan’s portrait, let me know. In the meantime, know that you’re in my thoughts and prayers.

God bless you both,
Kevin

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