Zeke Crapo’s art, life have made great journeys
Meet Zeke Crapo and look at his body of work, and you might be reminded of writer Jack Kerouac (1922-1969) or artists Joan Miro (1893-1983) and Pablo Picasso (1881-1973).
“I’ve been told that my work is ‘pre-existential,’ ” Crapo said, though he’s not sure why people describe his work that way.
Crapo’s work reflects a raw, almost childlike depth of emotion – done in free-flow composition with eyes wide open. Some are exaggerated doodles, linear sculptures that represent the artist’s imagination. Crapo lets it flow, starting with a line, a curve, or a squiggle until it becomes a leaping greyhound, a harlequin, a day at the beach or a woman’s face. The style is abstract expressionist to contemporary realism to which Crapo adds abstract or unique elements to recognizable subjects.
Crapo grew up in Southern California and began a journey of self-discovery after attending college in Colorado where he never got a degree. “I was too diverse,” he said.
His Bohemian ways took him to Spain, Italy and then New York, where he worked in restaurants and made art. He showed his work in bars, lounges and restaurants and did quite well. He also began compiling a book of poems, including some that have been published, titled “Thanks for the Ride,” and prose from the 1960s and on, filled with observations of his changing surroundings.
One poem titled “The Blocks and W.C.W,” was fashioned after the style of poet William Carlos Williams (1883-1963) and perhaps illustrates the comparison between Crapo’s work and the existential movement: “Everything depends upon a blue bicycle showcased in the young greenness yard rusting against a white chicken. Children. Play. The one with the toy revolver is aiming carefully at her head. Bang. We’re dead. Searching for America.”(1964)
Crapo, 62, moved to Australia then San Francisco, Portland and Seattle. About 20 years ago, he moved to the Spokane area to open a restaurant. He met his wife, Carrol, and stayed, moving into her South Hill home, where his drawings fill the walls and a small sunroom serves as his work space. Pastels, ink and pencil are his mediums of choice.
About a year ago, Crapo suffered a series of small strokes which led to multi-infarct dementia. He went into a state of depression and landed in an adult mental ward for a while. “I did hundreds of linear sculptures at the hospital,” he said, “It was like therapy for me.”
One piece called “Motorcycle” is segments of shape and color contained within lines that end where another begins. There are definite wheels and a vague body and the shapes grow upward. What appears to be a small flying machine, detached from the main body of the drawing, hovers in the corner. The piece could be an observation of the way we travel through life.