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how the bird came to symbolize immortality in many
Asian cultures. Today, the crane has become a symbol
for peace all around the world. In that rich history,
Haverkamp’s painting symbolizes a father’s wish for
a peaceful world for his son.
Kate Stone’s work, Childish Things, likewise features
a portrait of her son, who sat on the floor of her studio
with his hands gently around the face of an old doll.
The boy sits contemplating the doll’s expression,
surrounded by an array of still life objects. On the
symbolism in her painting, Stone remarks, “My concept
is very loosely inspired by Pietro Annigoni’s Direste voi
che questo è l’uomo?, 1953, a painting which features
the artist with his own son, a life-sized mannequin,
and a model. In Annigoni’s painting, he’s grilling his
son, asking him if he’s basing his art off of the live
model or the intermediary. My painting is meant to
be a commentary about how having my own son isinspiring me to base my art more off life and less off
of secondhand ideas and concepts.” In her painting,
textured slivers of light streak across the canvas and
highlight the back of her son’s head, further symbol-
izing the inspiration that the artist seeks.
In The Bribe, Timothy Rees portrays his young
son and pregnant wife in a room cluttered with toys,
books and an object surely familiar to most readers
here—a paint-spattered rug. About this work, Rees
explains, “I have been slowly moving toward narra-
tive painting, so I wanted to compose something with
a story. The idea of the overwhelmed mother and a
destructively energetic 3-year-old seemed to me a
very human story, so that became the foundation
of my painting. I constructed a staged ‘living room’
created with various props, starting from scratch
to be able to control elements of the composition.”
Rees’ attention to detail in this work is extraordinary22
Kate Stone,
Childish Things,
oil, 28 x 24"3
Seth Haverkamp,
Mars Rising, oil,
60 x 44"