‘Here I am : Howard’ | 61x122cm | Oil on canvas
It’s funny how a painting can take you back to a place you thought you had buried. I have so many mixed feelings about this piece. Introducing my dearest Dad, Papa Pool. one of the smartest and kindest people you could meet. he worked his ass off his entire life so when he decided to retire, he didn’t actually retire from life. If anything, I think he was more busy than ever working tirelessly to help charities he really believed in and could make a difference - Friends of Friendless Churches, the British Bee Keeping Association…I could go on. But I won’t. His beloved bees have become an integral part of his life and dominate 80% of his conversation so it was a given I had to immortalise him in his bee uniform. He looks like an Astronaut here which really plays into my ‘Retirees’ theme conveying a sense of liberation where an adolescents playfulness and freedom to dream complements the wisdom of age.
I painted this piece just before I left for LA. he had been ill but we weren’t getting anywhere with diagnostics so off I trotted to America. Within a week of being there, he was diagnosed with cancer. The (original) dreaded C word. It was a sucker punch for me to say the least and despite wanting to come back, he insisted I stayed in LA as there was nothing I could do until they knew more details. I did come back after a few months and we honestly were preparing for the worst. We had planned a huge 70th for him but he couldn’t get out of bed. well, after a year of treatments and our wonderful NHS, he turned a corner and five years on, he’s still going strong.
In short, this painting reminds me of the trauma our family went through but also everything that followed which totally warms my heart. One year after Dad was diagnosed, he was well enough for me to take him to the Royal Society of British Artist’s annual exhibition private view where this painting won us the De Laszlo Foundation award.