Stu Jenks' Fezziwig Press

A Passel Of Sticks: The vision statement for the Lord of the Rings series.

A Passel Of Sticks: The vision statement for the Lord of the Rings series.

[Images: 15 plus walking sticks/wall pieces in a corner nook in my house]

 

 

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

I have been very upset about the nature of our politics of late: the slipping away of our democracies; the general meanness and selfishness of American culture; the mendacity from media figures and conservative politicians alike; but I can’t continue to concentrate of the horribleness of the world.

I rely on physical beauty, spiritual mystery, and human goodness to get me through the day. And I can’t make art that’s entirely focuses on our cultural madness.

Add to that, I have Stage 4 Appendix cancer, that I’m getting chemo for.

Yea, I know.

It’s just not good for me to focus on the negative.

So…

What I can do is make objects that show the beauty in nature and in the world. Hence, I’m making wall pieces and walking sticks named after my favorite characters in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings series and in Amazon’s new Rings of Power series. Also, other characters from my and other folks’ fictional books and TV shows, and people I admire in real life are honored here as well. Almost all of the pieces will be made of red cedar. All will be sanded, oiled and polished to a lovely shine and feel. All will be beautiful. At least that is my hope.

There’s an old story in photographers’ circles. French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, in the 1940’s, criticized American photographers Ansel Adams and Edward Weston by saying: “The world is going to pieces and people like Adams and Weston are photographing rocks.”

I’ve photographed rocks and trees and stars for decades. Now I’m making pretty wooden things, made from red cedar that hang on the wall.

All us creative folks are doing the best we can.

As the Navajos say, I’m trying to walk in beauty. I bet you are too.

Love, light, and luck, Stu.

 

Christmas Haiku #38B

Christmas Haiku #38B

A long time ago,

On a cold December night, 

Candles burned for you. 

 

Merry Christmas, everyone. 

Love, and light,

Stu. 

 

(Photograph: "El Tiradito, Tucson, Arizona" (c) 1998, 2022 Stu Jenks. 

Christmas Haiku #38

Christmas Haiku #38

 

New solstice prayer: 

Chemo, kick some cancer ass;

And heal everyone.

 

(c) Stu Jenks December 20th, 2022

 

Image: Painting by Rockwell Kent, at the Taubman Museum of Art, Roanoke, VA. Image capture by me. 

 

"The Happy Couple" (c) Stu Jenks 2022

"The Happy Couple, Red Cedar, North Carolina" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks. Price upon request. 

Well. looky there. Our democracy has been saved for another two years at least. 

And I've been saying this for months. The young people, the Gen Z and others, will come out and vote, because Repubs have done nothing on climate change, taken away women's rights, and turned a blind eye to gun control. And they did turn out. The young people will save us. Now. let's just watch the Republicans fight amongst themselves, and watch the policies that Biden and the Congress passed begin to make a difference in Americans lives in 2023. In two words, hot damn. 

And this piece makes reference to Alexa and I: two substantial individuals connect by golden hooks to make a happier, move loving whole. That's what I had in mind when I made this. You can just see it as two pieces of pretty red cedar wood, hanging from a wall too. I'm good with that.

Love y'all, Stu

American Democracy (1965-2022)

"The 41 Nights, Red Cedar, North Carolina (part of the American Democracy 1965-2022 series)" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks. Price upon request. 

I dislike long artistic vision statement. In my mind they all should be less than a page long, but this bit of writing is longer than I like. However I have a lot to say. 

Fun fact: This piece is named after a catastrophe that occurred in my Step Zero novels. I love looking at it in my backyard. If you want to buy it, let me know.

Here's my vision statement regarding my American Democracy (1965-2022) series. 

The Vision Statement for the series,
American Democracy (1965-2022)
August 20th, 2022

    Since the rise of Trump, many people have shied away from using words like ‘Fascist’, ‘Autocracy’ and ‘Theocracy’, myself included.
    Not anymore.
    We’ve only had a true democracy since 1965, with the passing of the Civil Right Act.
    We lost our democracy for good, with the overturning of Roe in June of 2022.
    American Democracy (1965-2022).
    Rest in peace, buckaroo.
    We only have two political parties now. The Democrats, made up of liberal and moderate Democrats, Independents and wayward Republicans, and The Republican Party. inhabited by grifters, bullies, racists, fascists, theocrats and wannabe dictators. That’s it. The Republican Party of my father is no more.
    It’s not only because of Trump and his minions. Trump was just the most recent permission slip to behave badly in public. For the entire history of The United States, a good 1/3 of the men have been anti-democratic assholes. They want what they want when they want it. They see women at best as necessary objects in their lives and at worse, property that they can do with as they wish. They don’t care about majority rule and rights and privileges of a working democracy. They just want to make as much money as they can, acquire as much power as they can, and have as few people get in their way as possible. They believe in a God, but it’s an Old Testament God, spiteful, hurtful, down right mean. They are not true Christians who believe God is Love. They are weird cherry-pickers from the Old Testament, to justify their greed, their hurtful righteousness, and their power over others.
    They are assholes, a neglected diagnosis in the DSM-5, if you ask me. Most are men, but there are some women in their ranks.
    So what can I do?
    Not much. Continue to vote Democrat in every election, even for candidates that we barely agree with on policies. Some Democrats are hypocrites, just wanting power and position too, but at least they aren’t fascists. At least they aren’t theocrats. We will hold our noses and vote D.
    And we can talk about what’s happening. Make art about it. Make songs about it. Shake my fists at it.
    But that’s about it.
    Making these sculptures, these fractured pieces of wood, symbolizing the brokenness of my country, helps me a little. Just a little. I enjoy the process of finding, molding, sanding and oiling this wood. I love the smooth feel of their surfaces, as I stroke those that hang from my studio walls. I love sharing them with others, selling some, giving many away.
    But does it change politics, policies and the majorly-fucked-up-country I live in?
    Nope. Nada. No.
    But will all do what we can, don’t we? I try to be kind to all, but frankly, I’ve had enough. If a stranger comes up to me and starts talking some ridiculous mendacious fascist bullshit, he or she is going to get an earful. I’ll be civil in my tone but I done being quiet.
    Sorry I didn’t bring the funny today. My sense of humor is still here. It’s just under a profound fear that the American Dream that I was born into is quickly slipping away, and I’m pissed off and scared about it all.
    But don’t worry. Self-deprecating humor will return. I promise.
    However.
    American Democracy (1965-2022)
    Life in wartime, baby.

Circles & Spirals: Stu Jenks' Newsletter #12: October 7th, 2022

"Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair, Hillsborough, North Carolina" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks. 

 

Circles & Spirals: Stu Jenks' Newsletter #12: October 7th, 2022

1) Just a short newsletter. I'm having pretty terrible post-radiation side effects. I'll spare you the literally shitty details, but I'm a little concern something else might be wrong. I'll be seeing my GP on Monday and I may be getting a referral to a gastro guy. It's been very painful and unpleasant for the last two months. Keep those prayers and good thoughts coming.

2) I have not gotten around to photographing the new red cedar wall pieces, but I will. I promise. Look for them in future posts. 

3) Alexa is slowly healing up for her abdominal surgery. She's still in some pain. Long roads for both of us, I'm afraid. Pray for her as well.

4) And lastly, the mid-terms are in a month. Go online, if you need to, to make sure you are registered. Vote like your life depends on it. If you are a woman of child bearing age, your life may depend on it. We are on the edge of Federal autocratic rule in America. But if the Dems win big, we can push the fascist bullies back, just a little bit. 

5) Thanks for all the prayers and good wishes. It means the world to both Alexa and I. 

Love, light and luck, 

Stu. 

"The Death of Self (Revisited),Emmerton, Virginia" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks

"The Spider Web Next Door, Greensboro, NC" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks. 

"Infant Grave, Blue Ridge Parkway, Virginia" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks. 

"Rusted Water Fountain, Aker's Merchandise Store, Patrick County, Virginia" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks. 

Circles & Spirals: Stu Jenks' Newsletter #11: August 31st, 2022

"Abandon All Hope, Joe McFall, Hickory Art Museum, North Carolina." (c) Image captures by Stu Jenks, 2022.

1) Before I get into a commentary about Outsider Art and Art in general, a health update: 

Alexa is slowly on the mend. It's going to take a while. 

I'm slowly on the mend. Looks like it's going to take a while for me too.

I'm having nerve pain and gastrointestinal issues, post-radiation on my prostate area, more than I had during the entire 8 weeks of my cancer treatment. I didn't expect that. My lovely urologist Juan in Tucson says it's going to take a few weeks for me to heal, that all of this is normal. My anxiety lessened with those hopeful words from Juan, but the pain and discomfort has not. I'm two weeks out of radiation. I'm not going to freak out until October if it all still hurts the same as today. They say 2 to 6 weeks. Guess that's what it is. Acceptance doesn't mean approval. 

2) Now, some art criticism: 

Included in this newsletter are image captures of Joe McFall's amazing piece "Abandon All Hope", which is on permanent display at the Hickory Art Museum, here in North Carolina. They have an extensive collection of what they call "Folk Art", which I tend to call "Outsider Art". Traditional, this work is made by not formally trained artists who have a certain vision about the world, sometimes religious, sometimes humorous, sometimes fueled by a bit of mental health and substance abuse issues. Notable among these are Vollis Simpson, Horace Pippin, Morace Hirshfield and many others. 

At the Hickory Art Museum, I learned this, or rather I thought this:

There is also bad and exploitative folk/outsider art. Much of what I saw there felt like a con. Sorry but it did.  Some work was amazing too, but other stuff felt like some people were just trying to cash in on the popularity of people like Vollis Simpson, who late in his life, did make some serious coin from his work (as he should have, because he's brilliant), but much of what I saw felt more like a way to make money and less about projecting your artistic vision. Except some pieces, and the work of Joe McFall.

And, not surprisingly, when I got home and searched the internet, I discovered, again, that a lot of this Outsider Art is bringing huge prices at art auctions. 

Let's talk about Joe McFall for a second.

Not much is known of him, and I searched a lot. No wikipedia page. Only auction house tallies of his work sold, not by him but by art collectors. Joe does or did have some serious substance abuse issues. "Abandon All Hope" was created after he got out of a substance abuse detox center. And it appears he was originally from Tennessee. That's about it. I could have found a curator to talk to at the Hickory Art Museum who probably knew more, but I didn't that day. There was a little info on the label for the piece but not much. 

I really love this piece. It shows his views on addiction, both his own and of the world at large. It shows the seriousness and consequences of addictions, but also the humor of living an addict's life. It's a complicate piece and I really liked it. Addiction and recovery is a complicated thing. Just is.

However, what disturbed me, is it appears, by looking at how much money his pieces are bringing at auctions and also, by the inauthentic quality of the some of the work I saw in Hickory, that art dealers are taking advantage of addicts, alcoholics, and mentally ill people, and that pisses me off. Or maybe it's my mood regarding my cancer. Shit, I don't know, but it all smelled bad. 

Where I am truly naive is, art dealers, and art business people have been screwing over artists for centuries, whether they be relatively-sane creative folk like me, or people who have some serious mental health and/or addiction issues. I guess I just should accept it, but it still sucks. And I'm sure Mr. McFall was happy to make money off his work when it initially sold, and I'm going to guess the Hickory Art Museum did not taking advantage of Joe and paid him a fair price.

I, as an artist, have only been majorly fucked with a few times, i.e. aggressive haggling of prices for my work; reneging on the buying of my work after delivery; the stealing of images off the internet; once not getting work back from a gallery; small things like that. I've been lucky to have two great art rep in my life, and really good people I have worked with and who have shown and promoted my work. I'm grateful to all of those good folk. But it still bugs me when artists are taken advantage of by people with money and power.

My mother Mary Jenks once corrected me when I said, "Money is the root of all evil." "No, son," she said, "It is the LOVE of money that is the root of all evil, not the money itself."

Greed and avarice. An old story that never goes away.

This artistic missive here may be tainted with the penile and intestinal pain I'm experiencing now. I don't know. I do know I saw some very good art and some just terrible folk/outsider art at the Hickory Art Museum the other day. And I believe that people like Joe McFall may have been exploited in the past. Not the Hickory people doing it, but the art auction people and the wealthy people who bought his and others' work for a song.  

Here endeth the rant. 

3) Saw some great Grandma Moses paintings in Roanoke, VA recently, as well as a 'perfect' painting by Rockwell Kent from 1943. They are here as well on this post.

4) Remember to registar to vote and to vote in November. Truly our democracy depends on it. And don't fret. Trump will be indicted and convicted for probably a small felony. Proving intent is not necessary. They have him dead to rights. He'll probably cop a plea. He will not be President again, because of this conviction. Now there probably will be certain counties in America I might not want to drive in, given my bumper stickers, but I don't fucking care. I'm a liberal with a handgun and they don't scare me. Most bullies are cowards. 

As I said in January, 2017: There are more of us, Independents, Democrats and reasonable Republicans, then there are of them, the greedy, lying, avaricious fascists. We just need to fucking vote.

It's Roe-vember, baby. 

Love you all, 

Stu

All image captures by Stu Jenks (c) 2022 Stu Jenks, and Grandma Moses, Rockwell Kent, and their estates. 

"Hoop Dancing with a Vollis Simpson Whirligig, North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, NC" (c) 2021 Stu Jenks. 

Circles and Spirals: Stu Jenks' Newsletter #9: July 29th, 2022

"Stronghold Dream, Arizona" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks. 

1) Well, not a great month for Alexa and I. Alexa, two weeks ago, had emergency abdominal surgery that was pretty scary. She's on the mend but she lost two weeks of work, in which she didn't get paid. But the pain is getting less, the swelling is down, and she just went back to work a few days ago. (She works from home.)  I'm very happy that it all went well, and her colon is now not obstructed and she is smiling again. 

2) I'm at the end of week six of eight weeks of my radiation. I feel pain down there pretty much all the time. Peeing hurts. No fun. But in two weeks I'm done and hopefully the little bits of leftover prostate cancer will be gone too. 

3) Can't tell you how pissed off I am that the Republicans Senators voted down the veterans burn pit legislation, that they voted FOR a few weeks ago. It appears they voted it down out of spite. Spite. That Joe Manchin came around and will vote for the inflation reduction bill, that will help on climate change, on lowering health care costs and a bunch of other things. They voted it down out of petty spite. Republicans elected officials are just horrible.

I've said this for a long time. We have now two political parties in America: 1) The Democratic Party, who are made up of Democrats, ex-Republicans and Independents, and 2) The Republican Party, made up of fascists, authoritarians, and greedy fucking bastards, who don't care about Democracy or other people. They just about themselves and their wallets. Anyway, same assholes, different day. Vote "D" in November. 

4) Back to Alexa and I. We took a big financial hit because she was sick and I had to be there for her (which I enjoyed) and took time off from my work. (Hadn't worked since the 12th. Back to work now.) We are not completely broke but it's a little tough. If you have some extra couch quarters and want to throw us a fiver, you can donate at my PayPal and/or my Venmo. The login is my email address. [email protected]. Hate to put out the Buddhist begging bowl, but we could use a little help. I know it's tough for everyone. No expectations. Just asking.  

5) Haven't got out much to harvest trees for sculptures and walking sticks, or go hiking around the woods or take any photos, given Alexa and my health issues. I have made a few wall pieces (photos to come), played a little bouzouki, and screwed around on my phone, but that's about it. Wish I had more recent stuff to share artistically, but I just don't right now.

Here are some older photos that may be in an upcoming show in Arizona. Happy people still like my old work. I'll let you know if the curator picks any of my work for the show. 

6) So that's about it. If you have spare denaro, feel free and donate to my PayPal or my Venmo, but mostly just keep us in your thoughts and prayers. The outpouring of love and kindness toward Alexa and her surgical issues on Facebook has been very healing for her and for us, and we thank you, more than we can say. 

7) Lastly, a old friend Rhonda J. died way too young at 52 from a very rare cancer a couple days ago. She was a wonderful woman, always honest, always kind in her entertainingly outspoken way. I'll miss her frank sharing and her devotion to her family, to others and to her own healing. Fly with the angels, Rhonda. 

Love, light and luck, 

Stu

"Wupatki Flame Spiral (Revisited), Arizona" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks. 

"Solstice Rock Flame Spiral (Revisited), Arizona" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks. 

"Growler Mountain Milky Way, Arizona" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks. 

"Valley Of The Gods, Utah" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks. 

Circles & Spirals: Stu Jenks' Newsletter #8: July 8th, 2022

"Annie & Johnny Beeton's Graves, Oak Grove Cemetery, Lexington, VA" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks.

Eleven years ago yesterday, my mother Mary Jenks died. I could write a lot about her. Frankly I already have written a lot about Mom. Click on this link to my Amazon pages and you can buy/read two books about Mom. Dementia Blues and Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair) All I'll say tonight is I miss her. Yes she was a force of nature and she tended to push people away with her narcissistic neediness, but she's wasn't all bad. Actually, I'd say she was at least 1/2 good. Not a ringing endorsement I know, but Mary was a glass half full or half empty, depending on how you looked at her. You might be able to say the same for me too. For all of us perhaps. Anywho, love you Mom. May your spirit roam free. 

"Mary as a newlywed, Rocky Mount, North Carolina (c) Late 1940's. Photograph taken by my father, Stu Jenks. 

Our main story tonight is this. Again, I've already written about this before too, but he's a summery.

Johnny and Annie Beeton were my great-great-grandparents. Their third child Ella, born in 1863, was my great grandmother who married a Jenks, and off we went. But Johnny and Annie, it appears, and I've made some assumptions from viewing the partial record, were not like most Southerners of their time. Or may be they were.

Johnny worked at the Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Virginia before The Civil War. He and Annie already had two kids. It appears Annie and Johnny were happy. Then war broke out. Then the renowned and quite-crazy teacher at VMI, Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson, drafted the entire student body of VMI and most of the able bodied men in Lexington, into his new regiment. Johnny knew, much like many at VMI knew, that Stonewall was at best, a reckless crazy man and at worse, an egomaniacal bully. Johnny quickly got transferred out of Stonewall's Brigade and spend The Civil War, making munitions in Richmond. It appears he was quite good at making guns and bullets. After the War, he returned to Lexington, and worked at Washington and Lee College, just down the street from VMI. He and Annie had 11 children in all. Yep, 11, 10 who lived into adulthood. Sadly, Annie died in 1883 at the young age of 45. Given the large grave marker Johnny build for her, and other information I have gleaned, it appears Johnny loved Annie very much, and I think Annie loved him too. Johnny never remarried. Ella Beeton married into the Jenks clan and that history is ripe with controversy and hurtfulness, but prior to that, it appears the Beetons were a large happy family. 

Now, in the art world, particularly back in the 1970's and 80's, there was this thing call Conceptual Art, art that was more about the idea than about the object; art that couldn't be bought and sold that easily; art that was only remembered if you filmed and photographed it or experienced it live, in the moment. Conceptual Art is the mother of what we now call Performance Art. 

Back in art school, I did a bunch of Conceptual Art: burying myself in fire brick at the center of campus; leashing myself to the front porch of 608 Airport Road for 12 hours, not speaking for that time and hoping roommates brought me food and drink; building a brick sculpture from 1152 fire bricks, one a day, everyday, for thirty days, taken one down and then building another; and most famously, painting Fatal Figures on the streets of Chapel Hill where all the fatal traffic accidents had occurred from 1970 to 1978. Yep, I did all that, and I have the slides to prove. 

I made my current artistic career mostly as a nocturnal photographer, selling image rights and prints, making a little coin from my music, and producing a number of books. Conceptual Art was not made by me for decades. 

Until last week. 

During my travels since I moved back to North Carolina, I've visited many cemeteries. Some, during certain times of the year, are decorated with Confederate Flags, mostly the awful battle flag "The Stars and Bars", but of late with the National Confederate Flag, with its circle of stars on a blue field, and with its bands of white and red. They are trying to be politically correct. Good for them, but they fail. Sorry, the Confederates were traitors to the Union, not matter how much you might admire Robert E. Lee and the aforementioned Stonewall Jackson. It was a war to free the slaves and I'm glad as fuck, that the South lost. 

And I believe my great great grandparents, Annie and Johnny Beeton, thought The War Between The States was a stupid and ridiculous idea as well. At the very least, foolhardy. Why else would Johnny transfer away for General Jackson? He knew how crazy he was. He worked around him. But he also felt pressure that he had to serve, whether he wanted to or not. The southern Home Guard, a group of disreputable men who made southern men enlist during the War, made sure that Johnny had to go. Luckily, he found a safe place to serve, in a gun factory in Richmond, Virginia. 

And lets face it. Had he stayed to fight along side Stonewall Jackson, he would have probably been killed or died in the first year. He wouldn't have been able to come home and visit Annie during the Fall of 1862 to conceive my great grandmother Ella. And I won't be here. 

Repeat. I won't be here. 

So last week, I took a National Confederate Flag I had stolen from a cemetery somewhere (guilty as charged), and wrote on it with a black pen 'He Fought Reluctantly'. Then I drove the two hours north to Johnny Beeton's grave and placed in the the ground. 

Hardly anyone was there on that day. I took my pics. I also visited my great great grandparents on the Jenks side and my great great great grandparents on the Beeton side. I also looked at the large grave market for Stonewall Jackson and thought, "What an asshole." I always think that. Jackson was a crazy man who got thousands killed, fighting for the right for white men to own black people. Almost every time I visit Annie and Johnny, strangers pass by to pay their respects to Stonewall. They are almost always loud. They almost always don't notice I'm 30 feet way, staring at the gravestone of Annie and Johnny. On a good day, I just shake my head at their rudeness. On a bad day, I whisper "Would you all shut the fuck up?", hoping the negative vibe carries to their souls. Never does. 

Anyway, Johnny and Annie, I made a piece of Conceptual Art for you all. If you were alive today with your 19th century perspectives, you might think me a little mad, a little crazy. Can't really argue with you there. 

Love, light and luck, 

Stu

Circles and Spirals: Stu Jenks' Newsletter #7: 6/28/2022

"Flame Circle at St. Mary's Whitechapel, Lively, Virginia" (c) 2001, 2022

1) Just horrendous. You know what I'm talking about. The over-turning of Roe v. Wade. So much has been said already, and perhaps the last thing we need is a man bemoaning what I believe is a woman's primary right to her own body. Or maybe more men do need to speak up. I don't know. But I will say this. The steady march to a New American Theocracy, a nation ruled by religious beliefs rather than by laws, worries the fuck out of me. Vote in the Fall for all Democrats, no matter how wimpy or conservative they are, and register others to vote as well, so we can hold onto state houses and perhaps hold the U.S. Senate and U.S. House as well. All this makes me so angry and sad. That being said, I have to remind myself that America has only been a 'true' democracy since 1964, since The Civil Rights act.

So Rest In Peace, American Democracy (1964-2022). Adios muchachos. Hopefully a New Democracy will be reborn in the future.

One outside hope I have is that corporations will be less willing to invest into anti-abortion, anti-women states, not sending new offices and factories to those places. That along with the slim hope that Democrat politicians will eventually grow a pair and learn how to fight. I pray for the former to happen but have little hope for the latter. I just feel awful for all the women and girls in my country right now. Just awful. 

2) My radiation oncology has begun on the salvage/killing of the little bit of cancer that remains in my pelvic floor. Not fun. The feeling of having to pee all the time, not every day, but many days, sucks. But truly, the hardest thing about this daily process is walking from the parking lot to the cancer center on my bad left leg, and then the massive fatigue that hits me an hour after treatment. But I don't want to die before my time. The docs seems hopeful that this will kill the cancer that's still left. I sure hope so. 

"Desert Agave Walking Stick, North Topsail Beach, North Carolina" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks. 

3) I tried to sell some of my walking sticks and photographs at my local farmer's market last Saturday. Had very few sales but I met some very nice people, mostly the other vendors and a few shoppers. And of course, like my other Open Art Studio type events over the years, I had the odd person who said really weird things to me (I'll leave it at that). I may come back in the Fall after my radiation, when I have more energy. The people were quite sweet, but this really isn't my crowd where my art will sell, I'm afraid. People are there for the fruits and vegetables, not the rocking chair photos and high end walking sticks. But they were still very nice people. 

"Grimsley High School Graduation, Greensboro Coliseum, North Carolina" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks. 

4) I went to my nephew Will's high school graduation a few weeks back. It was a hoot. I hadn't been to a high school graduation since I graduated from Sanderson High School in 1973. Got a couple of good shots with the long lens. So much fun. Congrats Will McIntyre, and good luck in the fall as you attend the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. 

"DC-10 Fighting A Fire, Dragoon Mountains, Arizona" (c) 2016, 2022 Stu Jenks. 

"Stu and Stuart Sleeping, Mothershead Neck, Richmond County, Virginia" (c) 2001, 2022 Stu Jenks. 

"Harriet Tubman by Arron Douglas, Ackland Art Museum, Chapel Hill, NC" (Image capture by Stu Jenks 2022)

5) I've been to some fine local art shows lately, and I'm still trying to get into other art shows, here and in Tucson, but it's been slow going. Both having a bad leg that's not healing very quickly, and this fatiguing oncology radiation and I'm a bit hobbled. I'm not liking it at all. But it is what it is and it ain't what it ain't. Acceptance is the key and all that good shit. Keep me in your thoughts and prayers, to heal up from this cancer and this torn leg muscle, and that I sell more art, music and books so I can continue to keep the wolves away from the door. Love you all. Stu. P.S. Alexa says hey. 

"Mothershead Neck Flame Spiral, Virginia" & "My Ghost Likes To Travel Hoop Dance, Arizona" (c) 2022 Stu Jenks.