Plein And Fancy

233

Still Standing

Philosophers and psychotherapists talk about the importance of living in the present, but is it really practical or even possible? So much of what one is and does is a matter of self-reflection that, by the time the here and now is recognized, one has already analyzed it and, based on past experiences or the reported experiences of others, decided on the appropriate reaction.

As a culture, however, we tend to romanticize the man or woman who does not ignore or put off the present, who never longs for the past or looks forward to the weekend. And when such a person is able to put into paint or words or music that which we are too preoccupied to experience for ourselves, we call that person an artist.

By all accounts, Grayson Conroy is just such an artist. A resident of Indian River County since 1991, he is known by sight to the hundreds of people who have passed by him and his easel in public locations around Vero Beach and Fort Pierce. The artist community of Vero Beach knows him on a more personal basis as a former painting student, a fellow plein-air painter and a compatriot who, while he is a relative newcomer, has dedication and artistic fervor in abundance. His admirers are unequivocal in their praise. They use words like “unique,” “passionate” and “instinctive” to describe not only the artist’s work but the man himself. “Grayson’s passion just boils out of him and out of his canvases,” says his friend Bill Masciarelli.

Read the entire article in the Summer 2006 issue

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