The River Inside Review

It was a wonderful turnout at the Tennessee State Museum for the show "The River Inside." Along with the Platinum prints the curator, Susan Knowles, had maps of the Mississippi showing the areas each set of prints were taken.  Also John's canoe and selected equipment was displayed.  It brought home to me the massive undertaking this adventure was for John. Quotations from the book accompanied each photograph and John's openness with the physical, psychological and emotional pain he was enduring was endearing and warming to me. And even though I had some initial negative reaction to the props typical of museum exhibits there was more of an emotional impact.

I have talked a little with John about art and the struggles of being an artist.  It got me thinking after seeing this show how artist almost have to keep an internal struggle going to be creative. There seems to be some driving force to tame inside artist, otherwise there would be no art. The title of the show suggest this symbolically.  Some artist struggle more than others but there seems to be a place of pain until the art is out.  I couldn't help think too that once the struggle is over for John how empty he may feel. I wonder what his next project will be.  This one will be a hard one to follow.