When Michael Knutson was 19 and doing summer farm work, a grain thresher grabbed his left
hand and chewed.
If he hadn’t been wearing a sweat shirt, he would have bled
out. The shirt twisted in the machinery to form a tourniquet just under
his shoulder, leaving him dangling.
Help arrived 20 minutes later. He
did not lose consciousness.
The accident helped him focus, he said. “I was vague about what I
wanted to do. After that, I knew I wanted to paint.”
In his early 30s, Robert Hardgrave was making a slim living as an illustrator when his kidneys failed. After the transplant, he was diagnosed with lymphoma. In the interval between health and disease, he became a terrific painter. He still does commercial work, but not for clients who want him to illustrate their ideas. They come to him, they get him.
Although tainted by association with fetishistic fundamentalists, the concept of born-again applies.
Friday night, 5-9 p.m., Hardgrave hosts what he calls Drum of the Draw at Halogen Gallery, 2316 Second Avenue.
Hardgrave:
It’s an invitational drawing event that brings artists and their creative process to the public for one night each month. The artists create original drawings while the public is invited to enjoy refreshments, observe the artists at work and purchase art as it is completed. None of the work is over $200.00. Participating artists are:
Daniel Mitchell,
Karin Yamagiwa,
Ninjagrl, Robert Hardgrave, Soopajdelux,
Suzanne Kaufman and
Todd Lown.
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