My Dad's Lost Artwork
 

My son called me yesterday after he saw this sketch posted on Facebook. He asked if I thought it could have been my fathers work and after seeing it I am positive it is. Definately his signature on it. The guy who posted it said he found it while cleaning out his attic, and that he was going to hang it on his office wall. My dad is no longer with us but my mom is still alive, she cried when I showed her the picture, she had never seen it.
He was 13 in 1935 when he did that sketch. He lost his sight in one eye a few years later and his depth perception was badly affected and he gave up his artwork. We are hoping to contact the guy to see if we can make a copy or even better get the original...but I guess that would be up to the finder
I miss you Dad

cool story.

Very cool story! Very cool! I hope you can acquire the art for your own home.

Very nice story,your Dad had quite a touch,nice cross hatch work and shading.

I will bet that you will get it back,this guy has to have a hart.
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What talent. I can't imagine being able to create something like that, especially at 13. Hoping it ends up with you.
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Thanks....my dad did that sketch for an art class he took at the Boys Club. He was a smart guy.....worked designing underwater weapon systems for the US Navy. Took him to Navy bases all over the world for testing.
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Cool story and really nice artwork. Your dad was very talented, especially for a 13 year old!
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Wow. That's a great sketch for only being 13. Good luck with obtaining it!!
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Thanks...my son says he told the guy on facebook that it was his grandfathers sketch....he asked to see other sketches with my dads signature as proof so we texted some of those. Waiting to hear back.

Sounds promising !
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The Boys Club was a place my dad could go to fill the void and pain left by his dad deserting him, his sister and mother, who had to go to work full time. Never heard from his dad again....how sad!
This story has another strange twist....
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It turns out that the guy that found the sketch in his attic is a prominent business man in the community and is also currently on the Board of Directors of The Boys and Girls Club. He told my son that he wants to use the drawing to help promote a new art program that they are trying to get started at the facility.
He has seen the other artwork my dad has signed and agrees there is no doubt that the date, age and signature all match.

My son is going to try to meet with him today to see if we can have a copy made or even get the original back. In exchange we would be happy to make a monetary donation to the Boys and Girls Club.
We could also offer copies of work my dad did after his days at the Boys Club as a timeline. So we will have to see what happens, it is up to him.


After a rough start my Dad went on to become a great man.
With no formal schooling, he attended a training program offered by the US Navy, his aptitude was tested and found to be at a very high level, went to work at Boston Naval Shipyard and quickly surpassed his college educated co-workers. He was also a great dad to me and my seven siblings.
Getting this sketch back would mean a lot to my whole family...especially my mom.

Nice story. Even if you don't get the artwork back maybe it will end up at the boy club - the place that helped make him a good person.

I agree it would be a good place for it...could have easily ended up in the trash....and i am grateful just to know it exists, and that the finder saw something he liked about it.
I've printed out a picture of a cell phone picture to keep for my own. Happy with that and to be thinking more about my dad, reflecting on his early life.
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Awesome and good luck!

If things get contentious, maybe a sharing can be setup. Family Heirloom.

Thanks...We will respect whatever decision he makes.
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It is amazing that the place that helped make him the man he turned out to be may again benefit from his presence, even if not in person!

That has the makings of a real legacy!

Thanks.....It had to be hard for my dad growing up without a father. I feel very bad about that for him. Maybe the help he got there got him through it.
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I'd ask for the drawing back and in exchange offer to let them display it for an agreed to period of time, say several years and replace it with a reproduction.

That way you get it eventually, but it's not a grab.

Great story Bob,, I have no doubt he was one talented guy your dad,,, Apple doesn't drop too far from the tree from what I've seen.

Can't imagin this guy not giving back to your family.... Good luck

Just me being me, but how did a person who holds a position in the Boys and Girls club come into possession of the sketch? Ironic it was stored in his attic.
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Swimmer.... it is just a weird coincidence I guess?
My Dad lived at 418 Union Street in the 1930's , the sketch was apparently left behind at that property when he moved out.
Now about 80 years later a man who bought the house and found the sketch while cleaning out the attic, probably noticed that the drawing says "Boys Club Art Class". By some strange chance, he is involved with the current Boys and Girls Club in the same neighborhood.... weird I know.....I hope that explains things.

Thanks Guppy..... but it seems that the genius IQ skips a generation....:splat:
Although I did inherit his appreciation for great architecture. :wavey:

We were looking through my dads drawings to match his signature to the one on the newly found sketch. Some like these weren't signed. Sorry I had the flash on my camera on.
He did a lot of other portraits, some were of beautiful actresses of his time, done in pastels, absolutely stunning. My sister has them. I will try to get pictures of them.

That is really cool!
Sounds like your Dad was quite a man, I bet his difficult upbringing gave him thick skin and a good work ethic. Maybe that sketch can be an inspiration to youth of the future. :btu:

Those are some "Norman Rockwell" quality works!

Down the line the Boys and Girls Club could probably establish an exhibit of works by former attendees, and your father's work could be the catalyst that gets the thing started?

Ask if you can make digital copies! You should do that for ALL the prints anyway

Thanks for the excellent idea....that way every one of my brothers and sisters and myself could have copies. I've started the discussion.

I also like the idea of the sketch being displayed at the Boys and Girls Club, as Tim and Slip suggested.

Thanks.... Boys Club for helping my dad when he really needed it.


To enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens.

This is a great thread!
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What size are most of the prints? There are many inexpensive scanners on the market. I have an Epson scanner, I think does 11x14" max you are welcome to borrow.

The other option is to just take pictures of the prints with a high quality DSLR.