Art First Gallery to Hold Tribute for Artist
Ed King's legacy will be celebrated on First Friday with his paintings and sculptures.
By Loraine Page
CORRESPONDENT
Patty King, wife of Ed King, a local artist who died July 27, 2024, commented on the tribute Art First Gallery will hold for him on First Friday.
He is being honored at Art First, she said, because he was a founding member there, as was his mother, Alba King.
"He was a major influence in the Fredericksburg area for 40 years, and he deserves to have his legacy as an artist acknowledged," she added.
First Friday is a recurring monthly event in downtown Fredericksburg that celebrates the arts and culture of the city. People can stroll along the streets and view the variety of art produced at studios and galleries.
Ed's artwork can be viewed from 6 - 9 p.m. this Friday, February 7th. Art First Gallery is located at 824 Caroline Street.
Art First is celebrating its 33rd anniversary on that day. The gallery's president, Wayne Russell, said honoring Ed King on that day is natural since the artist had been there "almost since its inception."
"He was an integral part of the culture of the gallery," he said, "one that is reflected even today in the eclectic display of art there."
Many of the artists at Art First took classes from Ed. Wayne, an artist himself, said he was greatly influenced by Ed's work. He considered Ed to be "an artist's artist."
The show at Art First Gallery on Friday will include Ed King originals, as well as gallery members' paintings based on subjects Ed liked to paint.
Those who knew Ed agree he was a beloved icon of the Fredericksburg arts scene. His signature paintings were the "Ed King cow paintings." Wayne said "No one could paint a cow quite like Ed."
His wife agreed, saying his cow paintings "were so unique and eye popping."
His other subject areas were many and varied, including musical icons, science fiction, fantasy, classic movies, and other animals. He was also a prolific potter.
Ed worked as an art instructor at Germanna Community College for over 20 years. Patty said he really loved working there. Having won many awards over the years for his own colorful and creative art pieces, he encouraged his students to pursue their dreams of becoming artists.
Ed King's plein air regional landscapes, portraits, and animal paintings are in many private collections and hang in various galleries and businesses in the area.
His paintings of the Rappahannock River and animal subjects were popular. "I have worked on a horse farm for years and years," Ed wrote in a bio once, "so elements of nature and weather are always in evidence in my work."
Of his style, he wrote that he combines "realism with a small element of abstraction."
Ed King was born in 1953 on Long Island in New York. He studied art, receiving a Masters in Fine Art from from the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. Patty said that even as a young child he wanted to be an artist -- and he had a natural talent for it.
In Fredericksburg, he is remembered as always creating art. He could frequently be seen at the Rappahannock River painting his river scenes, or along the streets of Fredericksburg with his easel painting house portraits.
He started his career as a sculptor. One reviewer said his sculpting experience could be seen in his paintings, with their strong, almost carved, brush strokes.
Patty sees her husband's early work as being somewhat different from his later work. The earlier work included "amazing sculptures," and the paintings were a bit more impressionistic. "But he always had a wonderful mastery of light in in his paintings," she said.
Looking back over Ed's long career in art, Patty recalled how much he enjoyed all the students he taught over the years. "He was able to turn a dream of being an artist into a reality," she said. "He made a living doing what he loved."
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