The Man from Laramie
Joe Graham is a very successful artist who paints out of a loft in Manhattan
He is most probably the best known artist in New York at present
In his work he uses only pinks and mauves as well as vivid greens and midnight blues
The results are visually stunning and this is where his popularity lies
His palette does remind me of some of the colours that Marc Chagall once used
But many have questioned the validity of his work
He has been accused of hiding fault lines behind his limited use of colour
But his large paintings sell well and hang in a number of galleries around the world
On the 8th of April 2016 Joe Graham married his Albanian girlfriend Anxhelina and celebrated the occasion by giving five of his best works to the Peggy Guggenheim museum in Venice
He also gave two paintings to The National Gallery of Arts in Tirana although these works have yet to be hung
At present he is in the Atlas Mountains in Morocco seeking new inspiration
It is rumoured that when he returns to New York that he will be introducing a new colour to his palette
This will be the first since he started using Midnight Blue in 2008
The New York art scene is waiting with anticipation
I own one of his paintings which is called Lies Oliver 2 and is from the series of the same name
It was painted in 2003 and was one of his earlier works
I cannot say that I like it greatly but I purchased it primarily as an investment
Brooklyn Bridge
What have you been doing recently?
Reading and going to the movies
Are you still working?
If you can call it work
Explain
I dress up as a Disney character and hand out leaflets in Times Square
Which Disney character are you?
Minnie Mouse
Do you enjoy it?
I meet people
What are you reading?
It is funny that you ask that
Why?
Because a friend was clearing out the desk of an English colleague who had returned home and he found a book which he gave to me
What was it about?
It was written by somebody connected to the Royal Family in England
Are you enjoying it?
Well I was
Explain
I was enjoying the book as I love the English and their ways and then I found a photograph in the book which showed an animal that had been hunted to death by the person who had written the book
Did it upset you?
It made me feel sick
If it does not distress you too much would you enlarge on what you have told me
I was enjoying the book until I came across the photograph
What was shown in the photograph?
That the author of the book had killed two Thompson’s gazelle with one bullet
I believe it is called Risasi moja in Swahili
I hated her for it
She had killed those adorable creatures for fun and was gloating over her achievement
Suddenly she became ugly to me and I threw the book into the incinerator
Would you kill an animal?
No
Are you sure?
I would only kill an animal if it was attacking me or my family
What would you do if you were being attacked by a wild beast?
I would not have placed myself in that position in the first place
Let me put it this way
If you were travelling in your car and you ran out of gas in the middle of nowhere but could see a gas station in the distance what would you do?
I would take the can out of my trunk and walk to the gas station and fill the car up when I returned
But what would you do if there was a rattlesnake blocking your path?
I would wait for it to leave
But let’s say that the rattlesnake is the meanest son of a bitch you have ever come across and was itching to bite you
I would remain in my car
You have to remember that this wilderness can get very hot during the day and you could roast in your car
I would keep hydrated until another vehicle came along
You have no water and trucks only pass every three days or so
By then you would be a pretty poor state
It is just you and the rattlesnake
What would you do?
I guess that I would kill the rattlesnake
Do you keep a gun in your car?
No I like to think that New York City is safe now
I have faith in people
Is that wrong?
No but we are straying off of the subject
Well I suppose I would have to kill it with the jack or something else
To achieve your goal
Yes
Please put your sandals on and go to the window on the right
What do you see?
Brooklyn Bridge
Does it still scare you?
Yes
Am I crossing the bridge?
It is too early to say
But you can see the bridge clearly now
It is no longer shrouded in mist