Farewell To Old Friends
- 1994
- Acrylic Gel
- 32.5" x 38.5"
As the Harriet Young's short bio makes clear, some of the burdens she carried around with her every day were immense almost beyond comprehension, and in our view there is a suggestion here of a personal sadness and oppression due to these untamable, overwhelming forces which she could not control. Unlike nearly all of Harriet’s known work, Farewell to Old Friends (L to R: Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, and Audrey Hepburn) is devoid of manic energy and comedic hijinks. It is quietly presented, emotionally authentic, and with just a small leap could serve as a rare introspective peek into the soul of the artist herself.
- Below: The secular goings-on of daily life. Drabness. Rigidity. Repetition.
- Above: The ethereal, and freedom. Freedom from the silly and constricting laws of physics. Freedom from the cares and sorrows of this world.
Harriet's new marquee overlays the original, putting us on notice that in this one she will be concentrating on What's Important.
Of course this is just a speculative reading. We’ll never know if this was the message that the artist, consciously or subconsciously, intended to impart. Harriet Young left us suddenly, on the first day of her 67th year, and when she died, she took it all with her.
