RIP: Lawrence "Larry" Carroll: Part II
Larry's passing inspired me to look into my bookshelf and find my sketchbook from the semester when I had his class . . . (Spring 1991)
It was both fascinating and terrible . . . I haven't looked at my 22 year old ideas (and self) in a long, long time . . . lol . . . (note pile of sketchbooks . . .)
I found the notes for our first assignment ( "Christ Drowning") and my first sketchbook drawing of Larry: . . . I enjoyed rereading his admonitions:
. . . and a drawing of a much younger Jason Holley . . . (I think . . . I'm almost certain.)
and some other pages from the same sketchbook (Jan-Jun? 1991)
. . . looking at my linework at the time, I'm enjoying and appreciating the "directness" of it and the "improvisational" and relaxed nature . . . I try to encourage such drawing traits in my students . . . I remember really liking that particular model and her poses. (I drew her in multiple classes for a few years) Looking at the page now, I'm much more aware of contrast and focal points (the "dark" around her eye and mouth and it's relation to the darks in the chair) than I was consciously aware of at the time . . .
At the time I was very into Rodin (I remember reading a thick biography about him in the hotel room on my NYC trip) I also remember showing Larry a "print" of this page that I made using primitive (GUM printing) photographic techniques and how excited he was by the potential for it . . . I now know he was in the midst of his "obituary" series . . . so that kind of makes sense to me . . . Larry really gravitated towards texture and the tactile . . .
as I was scanning these images, this Tom Wait's song cycled through my iTunes on random . . . and I thought "Larry had to have loved Tom Waits . . ."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BbNg5_Jtd8k
This song is SO Larry . . . improvisational, emotional, impolite, "raw", "incorrect", but not disrespectful. Honest. Forthright. No apologies. SINCERE. (I've repeated the song at least 15 times as I finished typing and editing this post.)
Larry, I will really miss knowing you are out there . . . Godspeed. I would like to thank you for being such a key---and inspirational---instructor for me . . . guiding me forwards into my professional career.
Thank you Larry,
John
It was both fascinating and terrible . . . I haven't looked at my 22 year old ideas (and self) in a long, long time . . . lol . . . (note pile of sketchbooks . . .)
I found the notes for our first assignment ( "Christ Drowning") and my first sketchbook drawing of Larry: . . . I enjoyed rereading his admonitions:
- "get uncomfortable"
- "put your mind on the ropes"
- "if you don't like it, change it"
- "Think of them as images, use the model as reference"
- "[think] How did they think of that?"
His first assignments for "Political Illustration":
- 3 examples of what you do
- 3 examples of what you are interested in . . .
- Illustrate: "Christ Drowning" . . .due in 2 weeks . . .
. . . and a drawing of a much younger Jason Holley . . . (I think . . . I'm almost certain.)
and some other pages from the same sketchbook (Jan-Jun? 1991)
. . . looking at my linework at the time, I'm enjoying and appreciating the "directness" of it and the "improvisational" and relaxed nature . . . I try to encourage such drawing traits in my students . . . I remember really liking that particular model and her poses. (I drew her in multiple classes for a few years) Looking at the page now, I'm much more aware of contrast and focal points (the "dark" around her eye and mouth and it's relation to the darks in the chair) than I was consciously aware of at the time . . .
Larry was a very WISE artist and teacher. I took a lot from him . . . the third item on this page: "Walk around an object with a light." is absolutely profound . . . he suggested it as an antidote to artistic boredom. The whole page documents his wisdom.
I was traveling to NYC in 1991 because I had a piece accepted into the Society of Illustrators Show.
I drew this guy in the terminal. Seeing this drawing again after 25+ years was a shock, but I remember liking it and I still do . . . I like the "fluidity" and "sense of form" . . . it's funny . . . it's like someone else drew it . . .
I so miss Dwight Harmon . . . (two drawings at the bottom of the page) a dead ringer for Wally Shawn ("Inconceivable!" villain from The Princess Bride) I am certain I'll post more on Dwight at some future time . . .
At the time I was very into Rodin (I remember reading a thick biography about him in the hotel room on my NYC trip) I also remember showing Larry a "print" of this page that I made using primitive (GUM printing) photographic techniques and how excited he was by the potential for it . . . I now know he was in the midst of his "obituary" series . . . so that kind of makes sense to me . . . Larry really gravitated towards texture and the tactile . . .
as I was scanning these images, this Tom Wait's song cycled through my iTunes on random . . . and I thought "Larry had to have loved Tom Waits . . ."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BbNg5_Jtd8k
This song is SO Larry . . . improvisational, emotional, impolite, "raw", "incorrect", but not disrespectful. Honest. Forthright. No apologies. SINCERE. (I've repeated the song at least 15 times as I finished typing and editing this post.)
Larry, I will really miss knowing you are out there . . . Godspeed. I would like to thank you for being such a key---and inspirational---instructor for me . . . guiding me forwards into my professional career.
Thank you Larry,
John
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