Memorial

Charles John Andres 1913 - 2008
Student of Harvey Dunn, (himself student of Howard Pyle), artist, illustrator, teacher, and not least to those who loved him most, husband and father.




The converted side barn at the Oakes House, Berwick Academy, where Charles Andres taught his classes.

I had the privilege to attend the memorial service of Charles Andres, my high school art teacher, yesterday afternoon. (See this previous.)

I don't feel that I have been sufficiently close to him to elaborate further, except to say that the impact he had on his family and friends was obvious from the service, and that their love and respect for him was even more so.

His youngest son Mark read the following poem by Rudyard Kipling, and I can do no better than to reprint it here.

When Earth's last picture is painted and the tubes are twisted and dried,
When the oldest colours have faded, and the youngest critic has died,
We shall rest, and, faith, we shall need it -- lie down for an aeon or two,
Till the Master of All Good Workmen shall put us to work anew.
And those that were good shall be happy; they shall sit in a golden chair;
They shall splash at a ten-league canvas with brushes of comets' hair.
They shall find real saints to draw from -- Magdalene, Peter, and Paul;
They shall work for an age at a sitting and never be tired at all!

And only The Master shall praise us, and only The Master shall blame;
And no one shall work for money, and no one shall work for fame,
But each for the joy of the working, and each, in his separate star,
Shall draw the Thing as he sees It for the God of Things as They are!



May those who loved and knew him find solace and encouragement in his memory. An era in the world of illustration has passed now from us.

Bombing of London, by Charles Andres

Sad News

I heard today from an old friend, who told me the the illustrator, Charles Andres, who had been my first art teacher in high school, passed away on Friday.

Some of his work can be found here. The interface is a little clunky, but it's worth a look. Choose a 'room' at the top of the image, then you can view the images in that area.

I remember the painting above, Bombing of London from his classroom/studio at Berwick Academy. He used it as an example of how to make contrast and composition work, since it had no color to distract the eye.

He was a man of humor and patience, an excellent teacher whom I did not listen to nearly enough, and from whom I learned more than from any other artist.


image copyright held by the estate of Charles Andres