One of the good things about the holidays is I get out to connect with friends more than usual. And, among other things, past couple weekends I’ve popped over to Blue Door Framing in East Nashville, where Greg Decker has his studio. Greg is another friend met through a friend and is a gentleman and a scholar and a fine painter who is on his way to the Twin Cities come 2026 to continue his personal and artistic journey in St. Paul. And, so he’s had a couple hangs where people come to wish him well, check out his work, and ideally, make a purchase, which I did.
For me, it was a Red Fox painting and a Spanish violinist watercolor. Art has meaning for creator and audience, personal and universal and it’s cool to me that this can shift as paintings are bought, sold, curated in exhibits, and so on. They are kinetic, not static.
I can unpack this further in another musing at another time, but over the summer, a Red Fox came to visit me, to hang out on my front porch, right where my late cat Roger used to chill and watch the birds. I work in the front room and so if the weather is nice, I leave the door open, as if Roger was still there. The next day, the fox came back with some kill in his mouth, same routine, and once again, he lingered. Afterwards. I talked to a friend who is into magic and mythology and symbols, and she told me it was a good sign for the future, which of course, I accepted. Regardless, the visit stayed with me and when I saw this painting, the universe spoke. Besides that, I love the colors, balance, and movement – the photo doesn’t quite do it justice.
The Spanish violinist (or fiddler, in Nashville terminology) also struck me, in a different way, immediacy vs. intentionality in the piece, which is larger than it appears – and I love the touch of collage. Lots of talk in Spain out there in my dailies, as well, but I look at this and see a woman as intelligent, authentic, and purposeful, as she plays. In that moment.
I was chatting with another patron as she bought a few pieces, and she said, “I just think about how they make me feel and how I want to carry that feeling to my home.” That’s a good way to look at it. So, kudos to you, Mr. Decker, for spreading the love. Good luck up north. For more on his work, folks can head right here
https://www.greg-decker.space/
Doug Hoekstra 