Been thinking a lot lately about Santa Knows 2021. The series is intended to be joyous … certainly not political, at least not overtly so. For me, always better to be moral than political. Better to be grateful than angry. Better to be expanding than contracting. But no painting is powerful without emotional underpinnings. Never forget this when you look at art — if the artist didn’t feel something, you won’t either. In this emotionally charged time … a year like no other in my life … well … I’ve been waiting for something to blast through the newly established emotional event horizon, and give me the gift of Santa Knows.
When I saw these guys this week, I felt what they went through to save my freedom. And when Adam Kinzinger wept, saying, “You guys won that day … you held the line,” I wept too …. tears of gratitude beyond measure. Not sure if it’s sensible to reshape the Santa Knows series with many heroes instead of one. But I can tell you one thing for certain: if emotion is artistic currency, then I should try to find a way.
