My first painting was two swordfish fighting. I don't know where I got the image, but I'm sure I copied it from somewhere. I was about thirteen. I thought maybe I would be a musician or a writer before that, but my interests really began to shift once I started doing artwork. I went through my paint- like -Walter Foster stage, my vase of flowers reflected-in -a -shiny- table stage---even paint by number. Then I discovered Van Gogh and I knew I was just like him---sad, lonely, misunderstood, insane , genius. Everything I did was a la Van Gogh. Then it was Michelangelo, stripping off my shirt and flexing my biceps, drawing it all with a crayon. I had a great art teacher in high school--Montee Hoke. He was the wrestling coach and the art teacher. I loved him. I'd bring in my latest creation and it would go right up on the wall in the art room. He'd tell me everything I did was great. Everything went up on the wall---skinny me with my shirt off in blue Crayola, imaginary pools reflecting trees in watercolor, crucifixions, linoleum cuts of sad clowns. One day I told my teacher I wanted to try out for the wrestling team. I didn't really want to, I just wanted to please him. He didn't even turn around. He just said that all he wanted from me was for me to make art. "You're too good for wrestling," he told me. I almost started to cry. I guess I was relieved or something. One day he brought in a roll of canvas and stretchers and together we figured out how to stretch a five foot square canvas. Within 24 hours it was covered with blue and white oil paint, a touch of ochre---a blue DeKooning. .Mr. Hoke had brought me pictures not long before of paintings by DeKooning, Pollock and Rothko. " This is modern art, " he told me....so I became an abstract painter at sixteen.

-LRC

The Schoolhouse is located at 494 Commercial Street, in Provincetown's historic East End Gallery District. The galleries are open daily from 11, and always by appointment. For information, please call Michael Carroll at (508) 487.4800. xt 105