The Mt. Sterling advocate. (Mt. Sterling, Ky.) 1890-current, 1897-02-23
A BEGGAR'S ARTIST.
LIVES IN A CELLAR AND PAINTS
SIGNS FOR MENDIcANTs.

He Makes a Good living and Would Rather
BE Painter For Beggars Than n Beggar
Painter--How the Pictures Are Used and
what He Charges For Them.
A new school Of art has been discov-
cred. So far as known, this city has its
sole professor, and he is as odd as his
art But this is the source whence come
the thrilling pictures which the beggar,
MANNED, halt or blind, displays when
he mournfully relates just how he was
injured and strives to impress upon the
charitable how deserving he is of aid.
In one of the shabbiest streets of the
city, away down in a basement, flick.
ering gas fame lights the studio of this
queer genius 1T is place of business
such as would appall the well dressed
banker, but it is no exaggeration to say
that its occupant has an income which
many more pretentious painters would
rejoice to receive.
Technique and perspective meet with
small consideration at the hands Of this
king Of the beggars, for such he seems
to be. To watch ingress and egress Of
his patrons would give a stranger the
impression that some philanthropist had
established charity hospital in the
basement.
When the writer paid a visit to this
unique studio the other day, the artist
was found attired in pair of overalls
and greasy wooden shirt, as guiltless
of ornamentation at the neck as was
the neck itself of acquaintance with soap
and water. A bushy beard that had evil
IDENTIFY been brown in other days covered
the lower portion of the artists face,
and his shocky hair stood up in indig-
nant protest against the possibility of
invasion by brush or comb. From under
rather bushy brows a keen pair of eyes
looked out Mind was decidedly in evil
denoe; conventionality was below par.
Both cleanliness and godliness were
quite ignored.
The furniture Of the studio consisted
Of an old couch covered with material
which in days gone by had probably
been very pretty chintz. Now it was
thoroughly disguised by the accumu-
lation of dirt A real rag carpet cover
ed the floor, but not a single picture
was hung upon the walls, although
standing about the room were several
pictures in various stages of progress.
Permission was asked to examine them,
and they were well worth seeing.
One was lurid representation of a
powder explosion. So realistic was the
picture that If you cared to place your
finger on what were alleged to be burn
ing grains of powder you could feel that
the grains were there, though the artist
denied that that was the intention. He
said the painting was intended for a
patron of his with two wooden legs,
substitutes for the pair that powder
explosion robbed him of. The object of
the painting was to show the charitable
stranger just how it happened, and the
artist said that in his mind there was
no doubt that his legless patron would
greatly benefit by the scene thus placed
on canvas.
There was another picture, which rep
resented the blowing up of a man. of-war.
The flames that spouted from the decks
Of the unfortunate vessel were far more
red than the light that shines from the
chimneys of an iron mill at night. Ma
ture has never succeeded in producing
anything quite SO glowing as unmiti-
gated red paint, and there was no lack
Of it in this picture. The persons who
were sailing about in the air seemed to
have suffered frightful injuries, and the
artist said that this was purely to in
woke sympathy for his customer, who
was supposed to be one of the actors in
the scene SO graphically portrayed.
The price of such paintings varies
from So to $12. The artist can complete
one in about / 1-2 hours, if he does not
hurry. If it is rush order, the work
can be concluded within an hour,
though in that case the price is increas-
ed somewhat. When asked if he made
much money by this sort of work, the
artist replied that he did; that he gained
more than many painters who were
striving to do great things are able to
secure. His patrons were generally
prompt pay--indeed the usual terms are
cash on delivery. - n s.
AS for emIarking in higher art, the
artist would have none of it. He tersely
remarked that he would rather be a
painter for beggars than beggar paint
er, and as he waved goodby there was
contented look ON his face, which
showed that he meant exactly what he
said. -Philadelphia Press, T..a.l ~. .