David and Dan
The odd thing about Dan Heidebrecht and I was that we both left Norman, OK, to take up residence on the same intersection in Kansas City, MO, on the same weekend, but without knowledge of each other's plans. He moved to Kansas City to room for a while with his friend David Crismon. David was also from Oklahoma, although I had not known him there. Neither of them stayed for very long in Kansas City from that point. Dan stayed for just a few months, it seems, before heading back to Norman with the plan of soon moving to Berlin. He didn't make it to Berlin at that time, although I heard that he eventually did live there for a period.
The setting for this is out on their balcony, and the building that is visible in the distance on the left would represent the building where I was living at the time. We were both in brownstone apartment buildings.
There is no collage or other funny stuff in this painting, and that might help to make it my favorite from this general period. This is the one from that time in which I feel I was painting over my head. I did have a hard time getting a likeness for Crismon, but eventually came upon something that would work. Dan's profile, on the other hand, is perfect. This painting was good to me at the time that I did it, as it placed well in a number of local competitions.
I'd fallen out of touch with Dan for several years, and when I finally planned a trip to Santa Fe, NM, in 2006 I was anxious to see him since I'd heard that he was there. As it turned out I missed him, he'd just moved to New York City. So in 2008 when I went to New York City I was anxious to see him there. No, I later heard that he'd just moved back to Santa Fe. So I keep missing him. David remains much more stable. He teaches art at the Oklahoma Christian University.