Storytelling: Frank Diaz Escalet in Maine by Meredith Ward Fine Art

Storytelling Frank Diaz Escalet in Maine

Storytelling Frank Diaz Escalet in Maine Meredith W ard Fine Art 44 east 74th street suite g new york ny 10021 tel 212 744 7306 info@meredithwardfineart.com

Fish, 1978

Cut leather on masonite, 24 x 32 inches

Introduction

Frank Dia z Escalet (1930-2012) could tell a good story. He could tell it in words, but he could tell it best in paint and leather. Through his artwork, the artist cut, pieced, and painted his life story. Born in Puerto Rico and raised in Harlem, Escalet was drawn to the world of jazz. His New York City paintings depict well-known jazz musicians and colorful Greenwich Village hangouts. He created these images as if they were mosaics in leather, and they are done with such detail and ﬁnesse that you know Escalet must have been right there in the club, bebopping with them.

After years of living on the Bowery and working in the West Village creating leather costumes for rock and roll stars (Aretha Franklin and Sly and the Family Stone were among his patrons), Escalet moved to Maine with his wife and son in the early 1970s. The financial hardships the family encountered there made life incredibly difficult. At times, they were barely able to put food on the table. Escalet persevered, gaining a new inventiveness in his storytelling and finding inspiration in the life and lore of the local fishermen.

When he was living in Maine, the artist admitted to an interviewer that “the more of a challenge something is the more fanatical I become.”1 In Moby Dick, Escalet channels Ahab, telling his own version of Herman Melville’s classic novel. The huge, gaping mouth of the great white whale threatens to consume the tiny ship heading for danger on the deep blue sea. The picture tells a tale that requires no words. In Fish, a vibrant and animated still life takes on deeper meaning when we read the fish, lemons, garlic, and potatoes as a meal for a hungry family. Living in Maine, far from his roots in New York and Puerto Rico, Escalet was equally inspired by memories of his childhood and youth, and through his art, told the stories of pool players, shoe shine boys, and romantic roadside trysts. Although his first years there were filled with hardship, Maine proved to be fertile ground for Escalet, the place where he grew and thrived and continued to tell his own stories through his art.

Enormous thanks to Sheldon Geringer and Peter Lameray for their ongoing support of Escalet’s work. It is a privilege to work with them to bring his art to the public. Meghan Schwab’s diligence and creativity were indispensable in bringing this project to completion and we are incredibly grateful to her for overseeing all aspects of the exhibition and catalogue.

Meredith Ward Debra Wieder 1 . Frank Diaz Escalet, Mask of Solitudes: A Portrait of Frank Diaz Escalet , interview for La Plaza , PBS/WGBH Boston, Nov. 3 , 1988

Earth Will Tremble, 1980

Cut leather on masonite, 24 x 18 inches