The Comic

This print is available on ebay












We love the crazy antics of our closest animal relative, the chimpanzee. They can be so expressive, so human and for that reason we find them adorable.

I relate to the monkey because I relate to the comedian. I've had several friends who were professional comedians and I found them to be brilliant. One such comedian told me that all comedy comes from pain. When he said this I told him he had a sick sense of humor and that I did not agree.

Over the years, I've changed my mind.

I now believe all comedy comes from pain or better yet, it's the comedian that finds the humorous side of pain. We just don't give them credit for pulling us out of that pain. It takes a strong intellectual mind to rise above the pain and look at life through humor. I didn't see this as a talent till much later in life and after experiencing a lot of pain and like the comedian, I've had to find the humorous side in order to dig myself out of the darkness. It isn't easy but on my sharpest days, I can do this.

We don't give a lot of credit to comedians for having this extraordinary talent. We love to laugh at the jokes and sometimes we do realize that they have given us something to use in our daily struggles.  A huge percentage of comedians never strike it rich. Most of the ones I've know work at a humble working class job during the day and tell jokes at a comedy workshop at night. Many times their tax forms or applications do not reflect their talents, instead they read cab driver or waiter.

This humble cab driver pictured above was created in oil pastel on thick black paper. The black paper makes the colors glow. I was asked by a friend to create a monkey king but when I began drawing this little guy it was if he said to me, "I'm not rich, I'm a working class, kind of guy." Luckily for me, she loved the painting anyway!