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Failing eyesight no obstacle to local man's artistic vision Date published: 8/3/2009
BY EDIE GROSS
Bob Bowen first picked up a paintbrush more than 50 years ago--and dropped it almost immediately. He was trying to paint a watercolor of his uncle's New Hampshire cottage, but what was quaint and adorable in real life was less so on paper. "It didn't look like a cottage when I got done with it," Bowen said of his first creation. "It was a disaster." That's hard to imagine glancing around Bowen's Stafford County home, where the walls are covered with framed beach scenes and sunrises he's painted over the last few years--all since being declared legally blind. Bowen, 80, says he's a much more relaxed artist than when he attempted that cottage painting all those decades ago. "At that time, I didn't know that if you paint a mistake, who cares? You just paint over it," he said. "If you worry about it, it's not going to be fun anymore." His motto these days: "No worries, no frowns." Bowen, a Boston native, hails from a fairly artistic family--his kids and grandkids excel at everything from landscape design to computer animation. But for years after the cottage incident, he studiously avoided any serious pursuit of art, satisfying his creative urges by drawing pictures of dogs and horses for his grandchildren. He served 20 years in the Navy and another 20 working for the personnel department at Sears before being told that his vision was failing. "I thought I needed new glasses. I went to the doctor and he said, 'You've got a serious problem,'" said Bowen, who learned in 1991 that he had macular degeneration. The condition left the center of his visual field dark, though he still has some peripheral vision. It did not, however, destroy his artistic spirit. After he and his wife, Nancy, moved to Falls Run in 2003, Bowen poked about the 55-and-over community, looking for something fun to do. It wasn't long before he signed up for the art workshop, a weekly meeting of painters of varying skill levels who traded tips, tech- niques and homemade snacks. The workshop's founder, a Falls Run resident named Bill Williams, urged the group to embrace the unknown when it came to painting.
I just want to add that Robert Bowen is my grandfather, and he is one of the most wonderful men you will ever meet. I am embarking on the opening of a gallery and boutique in a few weeks, and I owe much of my optimistic attitude and success with the artists that I work with to his influence in my life. He and my grandmother, who passed away, were both well-traveled, colorful people who are loved by all they meet. I am so very proud of his accomplishments, and I happily hang 2 of his paintings in my home!
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