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Visit with Scott
Sep. 22nd, 2008 09:53 amSunday afternoon I called Scott, asking if he wanted to have coffee. He called back two hours later and said yes. So I went over to pick him up.
Conversation started with the things on his table.
We went through two stacks of old photos/postcards of images from Gothic cathedrals. Mostly sculptural relief and other carving on capitals, baptismal fonts, etc. Most of the buildings were in the UK, a few were in France, although the French pictures were more Romanesque from places like Vezelay, and even a couple from Santiago De Compostela.
He then showed me copies of two photographs he made of Dick Rutledge and Allen Forte. He had used an experimental technique in them, similar to Man Ray's solarization technique. They were almost abstract. He had mentioned Allen Forte - a life long friend of his from high school - many times before. But I don't recall he ever mentioned Dick before. Scott met Dick in photography school in the 40s in Los Angeles. They had moved to New York within a few years of each other, any they kept somewhat in touch. They were sometime buddies in spite of Dick's being gay. I offered to buy the copies which he sold to me for $15 each.
We talked about his second wife Phyllis. I asked them how they met. This led to quite a lot of remembering on his part. But it also led to more vivid stories of his first wife. He told me how she had died in his arms - I don't recall his ever mentioning that before.
We went briefly into his studio looking for an envelope for the copies. I hadn't been in there in several years. There was very much of interest - small objects, minerals he used in photographs, and box after labeled box of photographs from the 40s on. We didn't get into any of these.
We got some coffee to go at the Georgia Starbucks and went to my house, where we continued conversation. Scott was drinking two fisted - coffee in one hand and wine in the other.
Topics at my house: more about his first wife (some of which I had heard before); his many gay friends in his early life; Israel's personality.
We went through Chicago Photographs together on the kitchen table. I always love going through a book like this with him - his comments are so illuminating. We also went briefly through a book of photographs by Clifford Coffin.
I drove him back home, on the way home he talked about another gay friend of his, who Joseph Cornell had hired as an assistant. The friend had made a small career out of repairing Cornell boxes for museums. But Scott explained how the artist's family distrusted him and thought him a thief. He also briefly mentioned other indirect contacts he had with Cornell, whom he never managed to meet himself.
Conversation started with the things on his table.
We went through two stacks of old photos/postcards of images from Gothic cathedrals. Mostly sculptural relief and other carving on capitals, baptismal fonts, etc. Most of the buildings were in the UK, a few were in France, although the French pictures were more Romanesque from places like Vezelay, and even a couple from Santiago De Compostela.
He then showed me copies of two photographs he made of Dick Rutledge and Allen Forte. He had used an experimental technique in them, similar to Man Ray's solarization technique. They were almost abstract. He had mentioned Allen Forte - a life long friend of his from high school - many times before. But I don't recall he ever mentioned Dick before. Scott met Dick in photography school in the 40s in Los Angeles. They had moved to New York within a few years of each other, any they kept somewhat in touch. They were sometime buddies in spite of Dick's being gay. I offered to buy the copies which he sold to me for $15 each.
We talked about his second wife Phyllis. I asked them how they met. This led to quite a lot of remembering on his part. But it also led to more vivid stories of his first wife. He told me how she had died in his arms - I don't recall his ever mentioning that before.
We went briefly into his studio looking for an envelope for the copies. I hadn't been in there in several years. There was very much of interest - small objects, minerals he used in photographs, and box after labeled box of photographs from the 40s on. We didn't get into any of these.
We got some coffee to go at the Georgia Starbucks and went to my house, where we continued conversation. Scott was drinking two fisted - coffee in one hand and wine in the other.
Topics at my house: more about his first wife (some of which I had heard before); his many gay friends in his early life; Israel's personality.
We went through Chicago Photographs together on the kitchen table. I always love going through a book like this with him - his comments are so illuminating. We also went briefly through a book of photographs by Clifford Coffin.
I drove him back home, on the way home he talked about another gay friend of his, who Joseph Cornell had hired as an assistant. The friend had made a small career out of repairing Cornell boxes for museums. But Scott explained how the artist's family distrusted him and thought him a thief. He also briefly mentioned other indirect contacts he had with Cornell, whom he never managed to meet himself.
