PH OTO BY DANI EL LI PPITT
"A portrait is one
human being
celebrating
another."
Portrait
Of The
I
Howard Weingardens paintings
capture the spirit ofhis subjects
and express his views of the
human condition.
SUZANNE CHESSLER SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
wo paintings by Howard Weingar-
den have been placed in public build-
ings by the Farmington Area Arts
Commission. The first captures a
mother and child in a woorlignds setting and
hangs in the day camp building at Heritage
Park. The second shows Weingarden's step-
father playing cards and is in the William Co-
stick Activities Center regularly used by
seniors.
The gifts from Weingarden become part
of a 20-year tradition of giving that annu-
ally follows the selection of a Farmington or
Farmington Hills Artist-in-Residence, Wein-
garden's title for 1996. The works showcase
the personal styles and creative directions
of each honoree. For Weingarden, the focus
turns to portraits and thematic paintings
that express his views of the human condi-
tion.
"A portrait is one human being celebrat-
ing another," said Weingarden, 53, who has
been living in Farmington Hills since 1987
and is a member of the Farmington Artists
Club. "When a person sits for me, I realize
I have before me something wonderful and
inexplicable — a history, a destiny, a depth
that never can be fully comprehended — and
I try to capture the spiritual and psycho-
logical qualities of the inner person through
the outer form."
Weingarden, who received a cash award
along with the title, believes a good portrait
artist must be a good psychologist, observ-
ing human behavior with a loving eye to gain
more understanding.
"I'm very observant of body language and
facial expression and find there is nonverbal
communication — even telepathic exchange
— that takes place between the artist and
model," he explained. "A human being radi-
ates an aura, which I define as a sphere of
influence indicating qualities, and a sensi-
tive person can feel all of this."
Weingarden uses his wife, Helen, as the
subject of many of his portraits. He current-
ly is working on a rendering of a friend who
teaches in northwestern Canada. The artist
also creates portraits of people living in his
imagination, often mixing figurative images
with symbols just as he mixes oils, acrylics
and inks depending on projects and the ef-
fects he envisions.
Sometimes people appear twice as if re-
flected in a mirror; sometimes there are an-
gels to suggest an other-worldly impression.
"A symbol can stimulate a viewer to think
along new ways," said Weingarden, who has
turned a portion of his living room and ad-
joining dining room into a studio. "The hu-
man form really is a representation of
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