August, 2017. My wife's friends invited us to go to the Sawdust Festival in Laguna Beach. I did not want to go. I like art and craft just fine, and the Sawdust Festival is the
best of the best when it comes to that sort of thing. But I hate to drive;
Laguna is a long ways from here, and besides, parking for the event is awful. I
would have said No, but Mary’s friends were driving.
Despite the heavy development in South Orange County, Laguna
Canyon Road looks much the same as it did fifty years ago. Still the sweeping
off ramp from the Santa Ana Freeway, and still the winding road through the
hills that ends on Pacific Coast Highway in artsy Laguna Beach.
The Sawdust Festival is held in a shady grove just inland from town. As it turned out, the parking gods were with us. We found a space easily. We passed through the gate into the festival, and just about the first thing I noticed was a booth for metal sculptor, Dion Wright. Dion is one of the founders of the Sawdust. Later in the day I saw Dion there, talking with a woman who had been admiring his artwork. I stood to the side and waited for an opportunity to introduce myself. I had been to his house.
The Sawdust Festival is held in a shady grove just inland from town. As it turned out, the parking gods were with us. We found a space easily. We passed through the gate into the festival, and just about the first thing I noticed was a booth for metal sculptor, Dion Wright. Dion is one of the founders of the Sawdust. Later in the day I saw Dion there, talking with a woman who had been admiring his artwork. I stood to the side and waited for an opportunity to introduce myself. I had been to his house.
Now this visit was back sometime around 1970/71, so my memory is sketchy on some of the details. Pete and I probably took my car, because Pete’s cars were always on the verge of breaking down. I do recall making the trip to Laguna Canyon. We went there to visit Dion, who was at the time, the curator at Mystic Arts World Gallery on Coast Highway there in Laguna. I remember Dion’s painting, Taxonomic Mandala, and the whimsical figures in metal. He was arranging for Pete to display his paintings at the gallery, and give a presentation.
I introduced myself, said, “I don’t know if you’ll remember
this, but years ago I visited your home in the Canyon with an artist friend of
mine, Pete Hampton.”
Dion lit up. It was clear
within two sentences that he had a vivid memory of Pete. Dion Wright recalls:
"He was a goofy-looking teen-ager, as far as I could tell, with hooded eyes and long straight hair, a sly smile, and that remarkable depth. I wondered if he were crazy or not, but since all artists are off-the-charts in some or several ways, I just chewed the fat with him, and let him reveal himself and what he was up to. As it happened, he was up to very much what I was up to, so there was a simpático from the get-go. I scheduled him for three weeks on the walls plus a couple of his other-worldly lecture-demonstrations. The first one was modestly attended, but the second, through word-of-mouth, rocked the rafters. His sound-effects were unique, and I can still hear him being a tree frog. I never knew him after that, but he had made a strong impression on me, which I'm happy to get to follow-up on now, even though I missed seeing him again in life, and even though he apparently was beset by dark forces... not an atypical screenplay among artists."
I will note here, that it was quite common for people to underestimate Pete's age by many years. Of course, Dion asked if I had knowledge of Pete, and his whereabouts.
I had to confess that I had not seen Pete in over fifteen
years. Dion fixed me with a look that just froze time. He smiled, and asked if
I would find out about Pete, and I promised I would. Somehow that quick promise
had the gravity of a vow. I got Dion’s card, and email, and bought his book.
<To be continued>
Perhaps Mike Doyle can identify the small insulator in the introductory picture. This week's selection from Archive 1 includes the Banner picture, "Bygone Oil Fields" as well as some sketches, and early pieces. Oddly enough the fire pictures were in the lineup for this week. Because of the disturbing subject matter the last preview is deliberately left small. Notes or comments from Pete are in italics.
"Bygone Oil Fields"
<To be continued>
Pictures from Archive 1
Perhaps Mike Doyle can identify the small insulator in the introductory picture. This week's selection from Archive 1 includes the Banner picture, "Bygone Oil Fields" as well as some sketches, and early pieces. Oddly enough the fire pictures were in the lineup for this week. Because of the disturbing subject matter the last preview is deliberately left small. Notes or comments from Pete are in italics.
Not for sale
or at least….
$34,000 Now gone Whittier’s history
Another early work.
Pete's brother, Richard Hampton informs us that this would be:
"...a likeness of Homer, my Grandfather on my fathers side. He had a colorful past, from his early days on Wall Street, to the many patents, and inventions."
La Habra Heights
Like much of Southern California, the Whittier Hills, and Turnbul canyon in particular have burned on more than one occasion. Pete poured his heartbreak and his rage into these paintings.
"End of a World", 1967
Pete's brother, Richard Hampton informs us that this would be:
"...a likeness of Homer, my Grandfather on my fathers side. He had a colorful past, from his early days on Wall Street, to the many patents, and inventions."
Like much of Southern California, the Whittier Hills, and Turnbul canyon in particular have burned on more than one occasion. Pete poured his heartbreak and his rage into these paintings.
"End of a World", 1967
text on back:
Next: Finding Pete
poor coyote pups/ Peoples cruelty FIRE ANIMALS
BURNING/ those kind of people belong in their graves! They’re no good
Next: Finding Pete
Good stuff. And the quotes "those kind of people belong in their graves! They’re no good"...jeez, I could see and hear him saying that.
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