No Cash No Splash

11x 14

Oil on Linen Panel Board

On Display as part of the
St. Mary's School Head of School Artist Series
Dec.14-Jan 30

Another painting session with John "Possum" Silver (http://www.johnsilvergallery.com/) took me to his brother Winky's Dock and Haul on the West side of Wanchese.  Dock and Haul is Winky's headquarters of sorts for  his businesses of boat repair, marina, dredging, marine construction, etc. etc. Tucked in among all of the dry docked boats, cranes,  rusting heavy equipment, and jacked up pick up trucks is  the boss man's office - a reconditioned backyard utility building perched on cinder blocks and barricaded by loosely stacked igloo coolers providing a cool shade for countless napping Labrador retrievers ignoring the constant symphony of  power sanders, welding machines, and  smokey diesel engines of the lull cranes rapidly hauling boats from boatyard to water and vice versa.

Before setting up the easels in the backyard and out of the wind to paint this boat, we checked in with Winky to make sure that we'd be out of every one's way. In front of a duck taped window fan was the boss man sitting behind a desk covered with stacks of files and folders. Wearing a  t-shirt, khakis  and visor hat with a number two pencil tucked under it, Winky gave us the okay.  Being a hot day, it was even hotter in "the office".  I asked Winky how could he stand it in there with no a/c and why, by the way,  didn't he have any a/c.  He smiled and said that he had it that way so when people came into to talk to him about business or paychecks they wouldn't stay long.  It worked on me, and as I quickly walked out of the front door, I had to ask what was meant by the sign on the outside wall that read, "No Cash No Splash". 

Winky Silver

The pencil came out of the hat and became a reference wand as the author of the catchy phrase pointed to the words and said, " We'll haul your boat for free, but after the repairs are done,  she ain't splashing back down in the water 'til I get paid."

10-4