Art and the Homeless

Seymour Rosofsky is an artist whose art work is best appreciated against a background of travels. As a comedian once said, being in the right place, at the right time, is 50% of success. Seymour Rosofsky made being in the right place at the right time look easy. His first cultural immersion was in military service in Europe during World War II. He had training in art as a youth, attending Saturday classes at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Seymour was precocious then, the Army recognized his ability, and Rosofsky was assigned the duty of illustrating technical manuals. Rosofsky did not miss the opportunity afforded by military service in Europe to visit the art museums and monuments. After completing his military service, Rosofsky returned to his studies at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, earning a BFA in 1949, and the MFA, in 1951.  The Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, owns a curious oil painting by Rosofsky, titled: “Operating Room.” The date of the pa...

My first exposure to the ceramic sculpture of Robert Arneson was in an elective, slide show survey, of Pop Art. I will never forget the specific piece of work by Arneson. Its title was “Crazed.” It was a surprise, and I laughed out loud. At the time, I was certain it was a test by the instructor for which students were awake and paying attention. It was laughter that made the slide significant to me. In the aftermath of Pop Art, which by then had outlived its shelf life, an instance of Pop Art's comical possibilities restored (somewhat) the original excitement of the trend. Pop Art was a party. Until then, Pop Art was too cool for me. I understood that art before Pop Art was damned for being excessively serious, like a European opera, a "war horse," dusted-off, and performed once too often. A younger art was inevitable after the Decline of the West. Arneson was both hip and human. He did not presume to dispose of the history of art in favor of the “new, and improved” Pop ...

If I had to provide a full and accurate accounting of the academic influences on my artistic life, the list would include not only teachers, but students. And, the list of students would not be limited to classmates, but would include non-classmates and grads who had been—at one time or another—enrolled at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. It was a delight, then, to read the following quote, originally written by a student at The School, and copied here from a story published by The Chicago Tribune:  “As therapists, we don’t censor what clients bring to the sessions. We must stay impartial. Often, we encounter clients’ cultures, upbringing, experiences, values and belief systems that are very dierent (sic) from our own. Sometimes we can also work with clients’ experiences/backgrounds that are ‘too close to home’ and we need to deal with our own complicated feelings, internalized racism/ableism/homophobia/supremacy and countertransference, etc. … Can you keep it profession...

My teenage sweetheart's parents were delighted and relieved to learn that I had found myself, and that we shared an interest, which was art. I was invited to dinner with my girlfriend and her parents, to clarify my intentions, which I took to mean my artistic intentions, and which were, at least, not at cross-purposes with my girlfriend's parents' implied concerns for their daughter's future. I still blush at my youthful temerity accepting that invitation but, as my girlfriend said, we couldn't go out otherwise. Needless to say I was no match for their coordinated wit. Art was, for my girlfriend's parents, a cultural plaything. The experience probably had much to do with my obsessive defining, and refining, in writing, and re-writing, my notions, both artistic, and otherwise. It's not like me to be content to just paint and let theory be damned. I have consistently, and conscientiously, sought to align both tendencies. It is my answer to the question of why ...