Friday, December 28, 2012

Randall Tiedman: January 31, 1949–November 4, 2012

My interview with local artist Randall Tiedman in mid-October was one of those rare yet subtle events in a writer's career. Tiedman was a Vietnam Vet, a boxer, and an unapologetic liberal with no formal art training. He thrummed with an authenticity that was pure Cleveland. As for his work, it simply took my breath away.

Meeting this vibrant, funny and gentle man was a profound honor. The world lost him less than two weeks later. 

Here are a few snaps I took that day of Tiedman's Collinwood studio, and a memorial I wrote for CAN Journal.






Ciao, Randall. We will miss your beautiful soul.

*  *  *

5 comments:

jonas said...

Can't say I love it. But, it's striking, and really...good.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing this story. Quite likely I would have never encountered Randall without it.

RJ

Erin O'Brien said...

There's something about the way light interacts with an industrial landscape that always captivated me. It's truly the confluence of humanity and the heavens. I never thought anyone else ever noticed--much less captured it--until I saw Tiedman's work.

Aw hell ...

Anonymous said...

Thanks, chick. Another keeper.

MR

Anonymous said...

As good a spot for a hijack as any I suppose. I always think of philbilly and Erin's dad when factories and machines are discussed here. Happened across a very thought provoking article on techno-industrial evolution that I suspect some of you might also find interesting. I suck at HTML so I'll just post the address:

"Dark Ecology
Searching for truth in a post-green world"

PAUL KINGSNORTH

Published in the January/February 2013 issue of Orion magazine.

From the article:

I like to quote E. F. Schumacher, who replied to the accusation that
he was a “crank” by saying, “A crank is a very elegant device. It’s small, it’s strong, it’s lightweight, energy efficient, and it makes revolutions.”

RJ