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clown show


do you think the hoops'll play?

no, we'd better go with fire

they just eat it up when i swallow

the flame bit

but it's too windy we might

set each other on fire (how's that

for a big finish?) no,

the balls, we'll do the juggling steals

maybe some magic (slight of 

hand) hey!

did you bring the accordion?

the guitars will never carry in this wind

and yes it's cold but

we're down to our last dollar and

Quick! here comes some kids

put on the big red shoes

we are on!



-- douglas brent smith





NOTES:

  1. When Peter and I did these types of shows (not sure if this one was sponsored or if we were busking) our hair (yes, we once had hair!) was so long that catching on fire was a legitimate concern. At times, we could smell hair burning. 
  2. The hoops that we used were hand-made by Peter and covered in cloth tape. They were not completely round.
  3. If we had more money in our pockets then maybe we could have put fresh strings on our guitars so that they would resonate louder, even in the wind.

 

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The Mysteries of Love

  The Mysteries of Love -- painting by Douglas Brent Smith, acrylic, 14 x 18, painted at 2065 Pennington Road, Ewing Township, NJ, not dated.

The Towers of Vettunder

  The Towers of Vettunder - painting by Douglas Brent Smith, acrylic. This one feels like another cover to a science fiction novel. In the 70's I might have tried to write that book. Maybe it's not too late. 

The Insecure Plumber

  The Insecure Plumber -- painting by Douglas Brent Smith, acrylic, 16 x 20, December 1976. As I photo these paintings the change in the light delights me. So much depends on how you look at things, how long you look at things, in what light, in what mood...it brings art even more alive. I didn't say it was good art, just delightful art. Only you can decide if it's good (to you). I have not painted like this in years. Perhaps someday I will again.

With Every Available Device

  With Every Available Device -- painting by Douglas Brent Smith, December 1976. This is another of the series of acrylic paintings that I did in Oak Lawn, IL, living with Mom and Jack for a brief few months. My favorite art movement is surrealism, and this one clearly emulates the work of the surrealists, in particular Yves Tanguy .  When I moved from Colorado to Newtown in 2016 I threw away a number of my paintings, many from this period of time. I did not like them enough to keep them, I guess although I feel some regret at heaving them, one can't save everything and I live in an apartment that's about 600 square feet. No real storage room. This one survived the cut.  

Do The Math

  Do The Math -- pencil sketch by Douglas Brent Smith, 20 October, 1999.  Is it odd that I don't usually draw in pencil? There is so much more opportunity to make changes in pencil, both additions and subtractions. Somehow, though, ink has usually been my choice. I think it might have something to do with contrast. For this rendering I increased the contrast in the file and saturation to bring the drawing out more. I also did what I could to minimize the notebook lines, even covering over the holes and cropping beyond the wire binding.  I'm not sure what my head was thinking at the time -- we were shopping for a car to replace the Chevy Cavalier that "drowned" in a storm. 

Machine Work

  Machine Work - collage by douglas brent smith, 1980-81 Note: As a part-time security guard, I sometimes would read books to pass the time. One night my job required me to guard and observe a location from my car -- a black 1966 Volkswagen beetle. It was night, so I brought a kerosene lantern to read by. It was almost like camping out, as long as I kept watch on the construction site and reported anything out of the unusual. Nothing was out of the unusual. That has nothing to do with this collage, except for the one line on John Updike. Run, Rabbit, Run.

Dune of Destiny

  Dune of Destiny - collage by douglas brent smith, 1979