West Side Rag
  • TOP NEWS
  • OPEN/CLOSED
  • FOOD
  • SCHOOLS
  • OUTDOORS
  • REAL ESTATE
  • ART & CULTURE
  • POLITICS
  • COLUMNS
  • CRIME
  • HISTORY
  • ABSURDITY
  • CONTACT
West Side Rag
No Result
View All Result
Get WSR FREE in your inbox

Search the site

No Result
View All Result

Get WSR FREE in your inbox

AVAILABLE NOW!


HERE

West Side Canvas: The Violin Maker and the Artist

August 26, 2023 | 5:13 AM
in ART, COLUMNS
7
A Due by Robert Beck.

A Due
By Robert Beck

On the few occasions that I have held a professional violin in my hands, I have been awed by the integrity of the instrument. It feels impossibly strong and light. Something of that size, complexity, and durability can’t weigh just a pound. I’ve eaten almond croissants that were heavier. You can feel the purpose, the energy. It is designed to resonate, and it responds to the air in the room, to the pulse in your hands. Touch it, and it speaks. Caress the strings, and it will sing.

I painted Bill and Molly in the living room of the fourth-floor walkup where they have lived for 44 years. Bill Hampton, who is 81, makes stringed instruments. That’s one of his gorgeous violins in his lap. Bill began his career as a young man in Kentucky playing music and making banjos and dulcimers, and now he has instruments in museum collections, including the MET.

The elegantly domed wood top and back of the violin are not bent into shape; they are carefully carved out of solid pieces. The outside is sloped to the edge, and the inside is scooped out to varying thicknesses in different locations—some just 3/32”—using a plane that fits the tip of the maker’s finger. There is a post inside, under the high-pitched end of the bridge, held between the front and the back by pressure from the strings. The bass end of the bridge doesn’t have a post, just a rib glued long-ways along the underside of the front. When the bridge transfers the vibration from the strings, its motion is a pivot from the end over the post. Those vibrations resonate throughout the body, moving the air and creating the instrument’s unique voice. Measurements are critical. Craftmanship is extreme. There is a lot going on that makes a good violin good.

Molly Heron is an artist, working in two and three-dimension. She has done a painting a day for years. She also is a photographer and Yoga instructor. She carried my French easel up the stairs, which I greatly appreciated.

There are many stories. The fine musical instrument maker and his path from Appalachia to the Big Apple. The artist and teacher, and the path that took her through Kentucky. Their four decades in an Upper West Side apartment. My paintings describe what I see and learn in my encounters, and this is as it was: a lovely afternoon with extraordinary people.

When I was done painting, we talked about art and music for another hour. Then Molly carried my easel back down the four flights for me.

For more information, search mollyheron.com and hamptonstringedinstruments.com  You can get in touch with Robert Beck at robertbeck.net

To receive WSR’s free email newsletter, click here.

Share this article:
Get WSR FREE in your inbox
Subscribe
Notify of
guest

guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

7 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
D C
D C
1 month ago

I like how you captured the light coming into their apartment. And so lovely they continue to have each other and their art and that 4th floor walkup, too!

6
Reply
Cary Barbor
Cary Barbor
1 month ago

The story and the painting are both wonderful! Bill and Molly are both artists to their core. Very special, very talented people. Thank you for highlighting them!

4
Reply
Denali Boy
Denali Boy
1 month ago

Lovely, simply lovely

4
Reply
Gail Naruo
Gail Naruo
1 month ago

Every time the WSR has an article about and photo of your work, I am enthralled. Hope they continue regularly! Thank you!

4
Reply
Travis Roark
Travis Roark
1 month ago

Molly and Bill are two wonderful souls. The classical fairy tale of love and happiness with a city girl meets a country boy and the rest is history. Sorry my writing ✍️ skills isn’t what you would call the poem of the century lol. Molly & Bill are my family far far away and I cherish their friendship, and the fond memories of the times past. Love you both and wish you all the happiness in this world 🌎.
The HillBilly

3
Reply
Maggie McComas
Maggie McComas
29 days ago

Lovely homage to thee folks, and thanks for the explanation of how a violin is made and “works.”

1
Reply
Anna
Anna
26 days ago

The painting above captures a little of the old UWS spirit – natural light, a victorian room with modern people in it, art and music (not to mention carrying equipment up four flights of stairs).
Mr. Beck’s paintings and stories are something special.

0
Reply

YOU MIGHT LIKE...

Saturday: UWS Children’s Museum Will Take Part in Nickelodeon Worldwide Day of Play; Paw Patrol Will Be There
ART

Saturday: UWS Children’s Museum Will Take Part in Nickelodeon Worldwide Day of Play; Paw Patrol Will Be There

September 28, 2023 | 12:23 PM
New-York Historical Society Show Illustrates Why ‘Women’s Work’ Matters
ART

New-York Historical Society Show Illustrates Why ‘Women’s Work’ Matters

September 28, 2023 | 11:55 AM
Previous Post

New Law Fines Landlords for Unlicensed Smoke Shops They Know About

Next Post

A Day in the Life of an Upper West Side Writer on Strike

this week's events image

Explore Your Favorite Subject

20th precinct 24th precinct american museum of natural history animals art bicycling bulletin central park closings columns community board 7 coronavirus crash crime dogs events fdny fire food gale brewer helen rosenthal history homelessness jcc lincoln center monday bulletin morning bulletin nypd openings openings and closings pedestrian safety photography photos politics public schools pupper west side real estate restaurants riverside park silver stars fitness snow sponsored subway upper west side uws

CITY NEWS

The City
Brick Underground
City Limits
Eater
Gothamist
NY Daily News
NY Post
NY Times

LOCAL RESOURCES

Bloomingdale Neighborhood History Group
Central Park Conservancy
CB7
Community Education Council 3
Assembly District 67
The New York Historical Society
Riverside Park
West End Preservation

UWS Blogs

Bloomingdale History Central Park Blogger
North River Notes
Next Post
A Day in the Life of an Upper West Side Writer on Strike

A Day in the Life of an Upper West Side Writer on Strike

UPDATED Alert: Kitten Needs Help

UPDATED Alert: Kitten Needs Help

Give a Little Time, Make a Big Impact!

Give a Little Time, Make a Big Impact!

  • ABOUT US
  • CONTACT US
  • NEWSLETTER
  • WSR MERCH!
  • ADVERTISE
  • EVENTS
  • PRIVACY POLICY
  • TERMS OF USE
  • SITE MAP
Site design by RLDGROUP

© 2023 West Side Rag | All rights reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • TOP NEWS
  • THIS WEEK’S EVENTS
  • OPEN/CLOSED
  • FOOD
  • SCHOOLS
  • OUTDOORS
  • REAL ESTATE
  • ART & CULTURE
  • POLITICS
  • COLUMNS
  • CRIME
  • HISTORY
  • ABSURDITY
  • CONTACT US
  • WSR SHOP

© 2023 West Side Rag | All rights reserved.