"Oh, Hal… It’s wonderful!"
Hal Higdon began his career as a cartoonist before becoming a writer and runner. Lately he has returned to his early roots
Most visitors to this web site probably think of me as a runner who writes--or a writer who runs. Actually, I began my freelance career as a cartoonist--drawing comic strips for the high school paper--but when I began to paint using cartoon motifs in college, my professors frowned. Abstract expressionism was the rage of the 1950s, and they favored that style. Of course, a decade later, along came Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein.
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Exhibit at the Framing Station |
Pop Art suddenly was the rage, but by that time, my career had shifted from art to writing. Only in the last decade have I resumed painting, inspired by a Lichtenstein exhibit at New York’s Guggenheim Museum. Because I enjoy the comic arts--and collect original art from comic strips and comic books--I felt no hesitation at mimicking Lichtenstein’s style. After all, how many imitators do we have of Cezanne or Picasso or other artists who have captured the imagination of the public?
During the month of May, three exhibits in my home town of Michigan City, Indiana featured my art. The title of the main exhibit at the Blank Center for the Arts was "Oh, Hal… It's Wonderful!" That came from a word balloon in a Pop Art painting I did of a woman who looks at a painting of herself looking at a painting of herself. The style, I freely admit, is classic Lichtenstein. Many of Lichtenstein’s best-known works were based on images borrowed from comic books and newspaper ads. His paintings are huge and use primary colors and strong, black brushstrokes, but most of all, they are fun to look at. And fun to do.
More of my art was exhibited at The Framing Station and the Public Library. At the former, my work was featured along with watercolors and posters by Neil Kienitz and Laura Sprague, two artists I highly respect. It was an honor to be chosen to exhibit with them.
To prepare for a showing of my work in the Heart of Art tour in October, 2002, I am currently in the process of drastically reducing the prices on all my paintings. The prices you see listed here are no longer current. To see some of the paintings in the exhibit and learn how you might purchase one of them, click on one of the links below. Or contact me at RoadrunnerPress@halhigdon.com.
--Hal Higdon
