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Grace Slick is not an absolutist anything. She is a vegan but, "I'm not strict vegan because I am a hedonist pig. If I see a big chocolate cake that is made with eggs, I have it." That tolerant sentiment was threaded through our conversation last week, and it aptly parallels her attitude toward both her artwork and her life. She's opinionated, but not judgmental -- even when it comes to her artwork, her former life and others' lives. The woman is an open book, from psychedelic queen, to her mother and daughter reunion in rehab. She's candid about all the bumps, scrapes, high times, lovely lyrics, snarling asides and magic moments in between. It's the blessing and curse of living impulsively, seemingly fearlessly, and without a filter between the frontal lobes and the tongue.
Slick got back on stage with Jefferson Starship for a benefit after 9/11. She was wearing a tunic which she shed to expose one of her typical, to the point, expressions: FUCK WAR. I asked her about her unsubtle political comment: "I wore that cause it's important, and that's how I felt. The whole Dixie Chicks thing, you know, no one's got the balls to do that anymore. This is a free country. We should take advantage of that, use that freedom. I mean what would Jesus say to George Bush -- 'You're doing this shit in my name?'"
Until now, I've viewed Grace Slick only from two ends of the telescope -- from the 1967 caustic ingénue to the 2006 illustrator. From those perspectives, what you see appears to be what you get. Her artwork mirrors her personality: it is impulsive, straightforward, intentionally whimsical, childlike, and unapologetic. Not too much of a stretch from what I know about how she led her life.
One painting -- her best painting -- is an unflattering self portrait from 20 years ago. This work is an odd, and refreshing, inclusion in her made-for-marketing glossy catalogue. The portrait is confessional and strident, and honestly disturbing. Her attendant text follows form: "At age 56, I was in between ideas, who I was-what to do-and why. Somewhat lost, somewhat drunk, I drew a colorful, but inert being." With this portrait, Slick stands with Alice Neel, portraiturist of great and harsh talent. This was a difficult painting to make ... probably equally hard to pose for.
To see the Charlotte installation of Slick's, and meet the rock/art icon in person, visit the Wentworth Gallery in Southpark Mall on Friday, Nov. 17 and Saturday, Nov. 18 from 6 to 9 p.m. For more information, visit www.wentworth-art.com.
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