Rico

This is my friend, Christopher...

...and he is a total baddass.  Painter, writer, husband, father, mentor, counselor (to me!), a one-man support group in Italian shoes...he is solid as a rock.  For more than twenty years, we've been close friends and as the years roll on, Chris continues to amaze and inspire me with his unyielding dedication and devotion to being a true human, forever pushing his own limits as an artist.  He is able to dig deep into himself and make a connection that is at once evident, the moment you see his work.  A master.For me, having a friend like this in my life is worth more than all the riches on the planet.  He never stops giving of himself and is so quick with good advice, right when I need it most...Christopher, you're priceless to me.  Thank you for all the many years of friendship and tireless commitment to the arts.From his blog...

"I’m close. I can feel it, and I know the resistance which rushes toward me in its myriad familiar forms is an open wound on the self-limiting dragon which holds me prisoner. The things which hold me back are mortal, they can be overcome, and I see this now. Yet, I don’t know what is missing in front of me. I don’t know how much further to push out from what I see.

Then the ringing thunder, “I suck!” echoes in my head.

Still, I show up. I am here, I am listening and watching and moving and my hands and wrists and elbows are covered and splattered and dripping with paint and I know, I am absolutely convinced, this is for some purpose beyond for its own sake. I’m alive and making work at this moment in time because it is the moment in time I was made to make work about. The pervasive anxiety, the collective need for the visceral experience, and the light shown into the spaces between the lines of delineation and comfortable understanding."

Did I mention he was also really good with words?  HA!  Listen folks, do yourself a huge favor, today...visit his site.  Scroll through the gallery.  Read his blog.  Watch his film.  Then buy his book.  You'll thank me for it later, I'm sure.