Happy Holidays to you. We have been in Cape Cod trying to organize all of the images of Rockmore & his parents that have been documented since the last time we updated the web page in 2011. The dream is to get a "Working Catalogue Raisonné" (that is all the known documented works of an artist) up online in 2015. It is "Working" because we feel that even though we have documented 7500 works, we have only seen on third of what might be out there. We hope you will consider making a bid on one of the 20 eBay works below in support of our effort. One of our Holiday Gifts was Rolland Golden's new book, "Rolland Golden: Life, Love, and Art in the French Quarter." It is a great read on many different levels and documents what life was like for a young artist and his family in the French Quarter from the 50s to the 80s. It also gives you a completely captivating brutally honest and entertaining account by Rolland of his struggles and his successes as an artist and a family man in that time period. Best of all, there is the insight, the descriptions and the first hand stories of his friend Noel Rockmore. We include a few truncated page descriptions below to entice you to get this book off Amazon. There are stories about Larry Borenstein, Barbara Reid, The Jaffes, Preservation Hall, Gypsy Lou Webb, Johnny Donnels, the Bourbon House closing, the Skyscraper, French Quarter Interstate crisis, Bryant Galleries and more. This book is important to the legacy of Rolland Golden & Noel Rockmore & the French Quarter. We are sure you will enjoy it and that there will be many opportunities to visit Rolland Golden and his family in the coming year and get your book signed. Page 55-56 - 1960 "Francisco McBride said I must see Rockmore's show, that it was extraordinary..... The Show would have a profound effect on me as an artist..... I felt like someone was giving me electric shock treatment. What I saw was a basic realistic style that at the same time had a looseness to it that is hard to explain. This was combined with a dark psychosis that is powerfully real and unreal at the same time; here was a true unique talent..... What I was most taken with in Rockmore's work was his painting technique and how he brought his images to visual reality. The feature work in the show was of an African-American boy with one long skinny leg up".....(Basin St. Swing). Pg. 160-161 1965 The Death of New Orleans Artist Richard Hoffman and Rockmore's involvement. "Startled I turned and there was Rockmore staring at me, hair disheveled more than usual, bags under his eyes." "Noel what's going on?," I asked. "Betty's husband Killed himself....." "How did it happen?," I asked in disbelief. Noel began, "He was playing some type of card game with Betty and some of their friends. (long detailed description follows, worth getting the book for alone)....(Rockmore wonders to Rolland if he should go find Betty at the crime scene).... "I'm not sure you should go over there Noel. You might somehow get drug into the case. You were sleeping with the guy's wife, you know."
Pg 133-136 1964 Rolland describes hanging out in his Studio with Noel Rockmore. "Rockmore was not a dashingly good-looking man: he looked like what he was, a great painter with a brilliant smile. He had black hair and slightly bushy dark eyebrows with dark penetrating eyes..... Rockmore did have a fun side but he seemed to always impress people as a brooding demagogue, bad tempered and arrogant, with a huge ego...... Whatever his shortcomings as a person may have been, he was, in my opinion, a genius and possibly the most gifted artist to have ever worked in New Orleans."
We will end the year on that one and wish a very Happy New Year's to you as well! Shirley, Rich & Tee Marvin
The Golden Era of the French Quarter Team There is a eBay Auction of the 20 works below coming up this Sunday, Dec. 28th at 9PM ET. Every single bid by anyone helps even if you don't come close - we still thank you! THESE MAJOR WORKS linked here are for sale from the recent Shows. |
