"A Good Season"

      In the early 1980’s many states held artistic competitions for Ducks Unlimited “Artist of the Year.”  I was lucky enough to win a couple of these competitions, including my own state of North Carolina.  This painting was painted especially for the competition, and while most of the artists/contestants painted various species of ducks or geese flying left, flying right, landing or taking off, etc., I never have painted that stuff, so I did what I normally do:  put together an interesting (to me anyway) assortment of props that relate to a certain theme.  In this case it was waterfowling in North Carolina.

     I wanted the piece to look like a collection of things you might find randomly stuck on an old cabinet door in a hunting cabin.  I started with my hunting license and favorite duck call, and added some Ducks Unlimited decals from past and present, a ‘painting’ of a favorite old decoy, a couple of old shotgun shell box labels, and finally, a photo of my hunting partner, Gary Cline, pointing out some ducks on the horizon at sunrise on opening day.  As always, we were anticipating ‘a good season,’ so this painting was an easy one to find a title for.

     I was quite happy when the Ducks Unlimited Committee called to tell me that “A Good Season” had  won the competition and I would be the 1984 North Carolina DU “Artist of the Year.”  Along with that honor there were some obligations as well; I had to attend many Ducks Unlimited dinners and various functions, and many times Gary went with me.  Not what you would call a humble guy, Gary made a point of letting folks know that he was the actual hunter in the ‘photo’ in the painting.  Having heard this a few times, when I was called up to speak I told the audience that the real title of the painting was “Study of a Fat Man in Chest Waders.”  Somehow, it doesn’t have quite the ‘snap’ of “A Good Season.”  Once again, here is a case of having fun doing what I do. 

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