This is the first from our Poetry and Painting project. If you've ever wanted to ask Gabe, what's up with those figures in your pieces? He explains.

And because I have to:

I'll break you up into particles, to small pieces

Because your brain is miniscule

You little fool, come learn the tools of the trade

I made the rules so go to school and get played

Just when you're thinkin' that your jam is hot

Up steps the niggaz who be blowin' up the spot

Some Guru, G! (Still not as good as Too $hort. Ha.)

"You can't race for the end... the end will surely come."

Gabe and I did this project together almost exactly 20 years ago. What we loved most of all was the doing, the creative process in action. We'd talked about doing something together for years and then one night in late 2002 or early 2003, talking at a party, we decided: Ok, we'll do six sessions. I'd write, G would paint. We'd film the process. We'd have a show. We laid it all out. And then... we did it. 

It was successful more for the doing than the actual art produced, though some of that ain't bad. But we learned a lot. We were proud of ourselves. In later years, we saw other similar projects going round and considered ourselves innovators. Mostly, though, when we'd reflect on the project, years with no projects to speak of, we understood how important it was to learn the lesson of doing. 

So much of life is in the doing!

I'm late to the this memorial website, my apologies. I take things in small doses and hadn't clicked on this link. Thanks everyone for your shares, your photos, and memories. Scrolling through them was a poignant joy.

I'll add more soon. Love to all. I miss you, G.