The Brooklyn Rail

This is a picture of me in my studio on 19th Street in the Heights, North Houston. I had been living in New York and returned in the summer of 1975. It was pretty remote over there, across from Harold’s menswear in the Heights.

Enter James Harithas, who had been a friend to many artists and had come down from Syracuse to take over the Contemporary Arts Museum. The studio visits from Jim meant a lot to me at that point in my life. He gave me a sense of community and that somebody was listening.

He gave me my first museum show in March of 1976.  Jim was beloved by artists, loved art, fell in love with Houston, and married his wife Ann O’Connor Williams from down there. He stayed in Houston and became a staple of the meaning of art in those parts. He encouraged and gave so many artists a boost with his vivid vision. I can’t measure the positive effect he had on me and the community of artists and art lovers in those parts and beyond. Thanks, Jim.