By Marion Filler
The entrance lobby at Morristown’s 29 Ann St. seniors residence is a gray, utilitarian space with zero personality. Tidy but uninspiring.
On a quiet Saturday morning recently, artist Charles Caldwell arrived with a mission to brighten things up. He was accompanied by photographer Don Sherrill, his brother-in-law who filled in as an assistant, along with a very loud electric drill and, most important of all — a series of six paintings.
The title of the series, Wild, Crazy, Jazz, Blues and Funky Notes, is enough to put a smile on your face. So is the colorful palette. “I would describe these works as mostly abstract with a lot of musical notes,” said Caldwell. “Actually, I was painting sound.
“I listen to a lot of different types of music when I paint,” he continued. “A lot of jazz, a lot of underground club, and some rock.” He hopes the diversity of sound that inspired him will also enable a universal connection to his art. “It’s very important to communicate with everyone so we can be in harmony together.”
All the works on display are reproductions on canvas, each measuring 30 inches x 40 inches with the feel and look of original oils and acrylics. Musical notes appear in several compositions, as do lyrics, a microphone and even a piano.
The piano is special in more ways than one.
“I painted my own piano white as a piece of art,” explains Caldwell, pointing to a study of his wife, children’s author Lashone Murphy Caldwell, as seen from the back at the keyboard. “Exactly what you see up there is the piano in my house.”
Caldwell, “a young 61,” was born and raised in Morristown and attended Morristown High School, Morris County Vocational School in Denville and the Newark School of Fine Arts before moving to Essex County to be closer to the New York art scene. He has a gallery in his home and can be contacted here.
Former neighbor Andora Hale, now a resident of 29 Ann St., happened to enter the lobby at just the right moment for a surprise reunion. “I used to draw and paint in her mother’s house,” recalled Caldwell fondly.
Hale remembered how her mother babysat Caldwell. “So I’ve known Charles since he was two years old. He’s my baby.”
The same collection of six pieces also has been hung in the town senior residences at 31 and 39 Early St. They are a permanent installation, thanks to a system of cleats and locks that have been attached to sheet rock and aluminum studs where necessary. That noisy drill really came in handy.
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