An Artist For Humanity

Only, although he told them that it would be something really good, he never told anyone what he was to paint. They were all told that his painting would be unveiled in the open meadow behind his studio, appropriately, on Earth Day. They were all there, his sponsors, their advertisers, the press, and photographers from the world over.

It was to be a massive undertaking. Peter called 100 of his favorite models he had painted over the years. Every one of them responded. He agreed to pay them $10,000 each for the privilege of painting them, only he owned all the rights to their image. His studio was filled with women, women who he had invited to attend the evening before and women he had to paint quickly so as for them to be photographed in tomorrow's morning light. It was virtually impossible for him to paint one hundred women with so little time, so he used a spray painter, with a brush over technique, the first time he had ever used it. Also, he had a dozen assistants helping him to paint areas that wouldn't show on camera but that needed to be painted nonetheless, because they would certainly show on camera if they weren't painted. It was a monumental undertaking.

The next morning with the world press assembled behind Peter's studio, just as the sun appeared over the horizon, they all patiently waited for Peter to appear. They lazed around out back drinking coffee and eating donuts. The reporters and cameramen looked around expecting to be greeted with a sheet draped over his masterpiece. Only, there was nothing but a stand of trees off in the distance and set back in the beautiful grassy meadow. He came down his back studio steps dressed in white linen pants and white shirt with sandals.

With his short blond hair and his sparkling blue eyes, he appeared in the likeness of Andy Warhol, only better looking and a bit taller. It was uncharacteristic to see an artist who used so much color in his paints all dressed in white. He looked more like an evangelist than a painter.

"This is a fair representation of our planet," he said looking out to the empty open meadow. It's such a beautiful sight that I come out here sometimes for inspiration. I love this meadow with the grass so lushly green and all the life that those stand of trees in the distance supports."

Only, no one wanted to hear Peter talk about meadows. Impatiently waiting for him to appear, they eagerly wanted to know what it was he had painted to celebrate Earth Day.

"What have you painted, Peter," said someone from the crowd.

"Where is it at," said someone else?

"Is it in your studio," said another?

"Shall we come inside," said a reported moving his tape recorder closer to the artist?"

"It is there," he pointed. "I painted that meadow and those trees."

They all turned and looked out at the meadow. Hundreds of photos and videotape from dozens of cameras were taken simultaneously. The cameramen walked closer angling their cameras up and down and side to side, until walking too close they nearly stepped on one of the models.

"And this is what will happen if we don't preserve the earth."

Suddenly in one uniform surreal like movement, the grass turned around showing a barren wasteland and the trees turned around showing a stand of dead trees. Gone were all the grass and all the trees. As if a forest fire had decimated the area, what were left were bare earth and rotted wood.

The photos and video that was shown the world over and used in every commercial imaginable to help people conserve their wasteful ways and to help preserve the planet did a remarkable job of helping to make the planet greener.

Happy Earth Day

THE END