Got up this morning about six. A little windy, but warm. Sat down at the kitchen table and knocked out a possible opening to an upcoming Classic Gunfight: In August of 1880 Billy the Kid was rustling cattle in west Texas, Wyatt Earp was riding shotgun on the Benson stage and Jesse James was planning his last train robbery. In the Netherlands, the son of a preacher man decided he was going to be an artist. Of the four future icons, only Wyatt Earp would escape death by pistol shot.
Based on the above, I whipped out a little study from my Do-Or-Die-Skies pile:
Daily Whipout: "Billy's Tascosa Beeves Heading for New Mexico"
While the Kid was "dealing in cattle" in the Tascoasa, Texas area, the son of a preacher man in the Netherlands had just decided to become an artist. I wondered how Vincent might paint the Kid.
Daily Whipout: "Van Gogh's Billy"
All color theory and a smidge of Seurat-splat. Perhaps too loosey goosey for the Redheaded Madman, but I'm on his trail (and I plan on tracking his every move on my next trip to the home of the French fry).
In related news, Claude Monet's "The Grand Canal" (1908) just sold for $35.6 million and Gauguin's "Nafea faa Iroipo" (1892) just sold for "close to $300 million." And these guys couldn't even pay their bar bills when they painted these puppies.
Got into the office and met this guy:
Film Director Claude Gagnon: A French-Canadian on the trail of Will James
Claude had just come from the Kingman area where he was investigating Will James employment at Tap Duncan's Diamond Bar Ranch. Claude tracked down a specific Joshua tree on the ranch.
The Joshua Tree
Claude has been out on the trail for over eight months and met with Will James collector Abe Hays yesterday. He wanted to meet with my cousin Tap Lou Duncan, but she wasn't interested ("The Duncans didn't talk about him to me and I have no stories from them" is how she put it). Can't argue with that integrity.
"Van Gogh sided with lack of talent."
—A Van Gogh expert discussing Vincent's humble, but brilliant simplicity