Jon Hassler paintings...
It
has been 18 months since Jon Hassler died. Jon was
well known for his literary skills, but many people
are not aware that Jon was an artist before he was a
novelist. He would teach English during the school
year (high school and college) and during the summer
he was on the art fair circuit. He began writing
relatively late in life (Staggerford was published
when he was 44), but he always enjoyed painting
whenever he had the chance.
Just like his books, his paintings have reoccurring
themes; rural landscapes, long light, complex skies
and almost always a strong vanishing point element.
In fact, they are almost exactly what you would
expect if you have read any of his novels or short
stories.
We came to know Jon five years before he died from
the complications of progressive supranuclear palsy.
Jon and his wife Gretchen entrusted us with 22 of his
original paintings (above left, 'Snowfall', 20"x16",
oil on canvas; above right, 'Road to Johnson's Farm
I', 16"x12", oil on canvas), all of which were
painted in the late 1980's. These are all remarkable
originals and a portion of each sale will be donated
to CurePSP (www.psp.org).