As I mentioned in my last newsletter, Mitch and his "brothers" from the Hum were very close. The gentlemen above are Bob Melvin, Howie Anton, and Mitch. Sadly, both Bob and Mitch are no longer with us.
Howie loves to write poetry so I'd like to share two pieces he wrote for Mitch. The first one titled Flat Man refers to the figures that Mitch used on his pots and clay monoprints. I'm sure many of you are familiar with them.
Flat Man
Mitch Lyons, American Artist
1938-2018
Hey flat man
What’s the hurry
Relativity’s gotcha
All stretched out
Like a Giacometti
You ain’t goin nowhere
But round and round
Cause your world’s
Nuthin’ but a pot o’ clay
So slow down
There ain’t nowhere to go
But back where ya started
Not with a “Big Bang” either
Like them physics guys say
It was the Potter’s hand
Who carved you from
A slab of clay
And smooshed you flat
Into your two-dimensional world
With no beginning
And no end
You’ll just go round and round
Forever and ever
So slow down
And enjoy your lot
Cause your world’s
Just an earthen pot
With ridges and valleys
Ready to be explored
So slow down
And take in its beauty
For clay pots are fragile
And easily shattered
H
Howie shared his second poem, Art Was Who He Was, at Mitch's memorial. It's a beautiful tribute to Mitch and the bond between the "brothers".
Art Was Who He Was
In Memory of Mitch Lyons
American Artist 1938-2018
He was an artist
He was my friend
He was my brother
Not the blood kind
But of common circumstance
We played together
We argued and fought
As brothers often do
And then we played again
With closer bond
And now he is my brother of memory
He will be missed
Life for him was art
And art for him was life
The molded clay
Expressed who he was
It revealed his soul
The clay was his everything
And from its formless mass
He evoked hidden beauty
Driven to create
He teased emotion
From slimy slips of earth
Pressed lovingly onto canvas
Or molded into joyful pots
Art was who he was
And he made it part of us
H
