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Joseph B. O’Sickey ’40, in his Kent, Ohio studio, lives by his father’s advice: Do anything you want to do in life, but be good at it and do it now.
THE CREATIVE EXPERIENCE: JOSEPH B. O’SICKEY ’40 REFLECTS ON LIVING A VIVID, AWARE LIFE At 93, Joseph O’Sickey ’40 paints what
O’Sickey began sketching the chickens
he sees at least three days a week with
in his grandmother’s Cleveland backyard as
and Henry Keller (class of 1892). Goldsmith
because I wanted to be serious about my
dramatic results. But he treasures the expe-
a child of four. His parents encouraged his
and designer John Paul Miller ’40 and the
work and clear about the best way to help
rience of making paintings even more than
creativity by purchasing paper for him and,
late designer/metalsmith Melvin Rose ’40
students,” O’Sickey said. “My point of
the satisfaction of seeing the finished work.
at Christmas, various how-to books for art-
were both classmates in the Industrial
view about doing the graphic design was,
To illustrate the point, he likes to share
with Carl Gaertner ’23, Frank Wilcox ’10,
“I have a background in teaching
ists. He took Saturday art classes at the
Design program taught by Viktor
‘What can I get out of it besides money?’
one of his favorite anecdotes. He and
Cleveland Museum of Art and CIA (then the
Schreckengost ’29, and both became
It isn’t worth doing if I can’t learn something
his beloved wife, the late artist Algesa
Cleveland School of Art). As a high school
lifelong friends of O’Sickey.
and practice my art. I made a decision
(D’Agostino) O’Sickey, were walking down
student, he took art classes taught by Paul
the steps of the Grand Palais in Paris after viewing what they regarded as a breathtak-
After graduation, O’Sickey made a living
that I would unify the work, no matter how
Travis ’17 at the former John Huntington
and a life from art. Even as an Army soldier
slight it was. The objective of art is to unify
Polytechnic Institute. Art teachers Harold
in World War II, he drew with whatever
the experience.”
ing Matisse retrospective. O’Sickey noticed
Hunsicker and Paul Scherer provided fur-
materials he could get his hands on.
his wife had tears running down her face.
ther encouragement at East Technical High
He still has some 600 of the 750 drawings
“I said ‘What’s the matter, Darling? Did
School, insisting that O’Sickey apply to the
you get something in your eye?’ and she
Cleveland School of Art and even buying
said ‘Yes, Matisse.’ And then she explained
mat board for the paintings in his portfolio
that she was thinking about how fortunate
on their meager, Depression-era wages.
Matisse was to have had the experience
(What they would not do was winnow down
of doing all those beautiful paintings. I said
the 200 plus watercolors he had painted
‘That’s what I love about you, Baby, you
any further than the 25 they had decided
know what really counts.’ It’s the experi-
were his best, even though the college
ence of doing it; that’s what I value and it’s
admissions office only asked to see 10.)
nothing else.” O’Sickey has been enjoying the experience of making art for nearly 90 years. He sometimes saturates the canvas with
O’Sickey entered the Cleveland School of
During all those years of teaching and creating applied art, O’Sickey was painting whenever he could. During the 1960s and
“I made a decision that
1970s, he had six solo shows at Jacques Seligmann Galleries in New York City and
I would unify the work,
his work was in the Kennedy Galleries in
no matter how slight it was.
up a steady pace of group and solo shows
The objective of art is to unify the experience.”
Art in 1936 with the benefit of a full Ranney
New York for more than 20 years. He kept with works regularly acquired for corporate, museum and private collections. His wife, Algesa, was constantly creating too, whether directing an art gallery, running an interior design consultancy, drawing,
Scholarship. He became immersed in a
he made in North Africa and India.
painting, or creating her distinctive fabric
culture of great artists and designers and
After the war, his creative career included
sculptures. “We wanted our life in the arts
rich, non-primary colors of interesting con-
recalls painting along the train tracks in
18 years in graphic design; freelance illus-
but we wanted it on different terms than
trasts, as in his painted responses to the
Little Italy with classmate Marco DeMarco ’40,
trating for advertising firms and department
most people wanted. I wanted a more vivid
garden he overlooks from his studio outside
who he had met at Huntington along with
stores; humorous cartoons, some of which
and aware life and I wanted that to come
Kent, Ohio; he sometimes makes minimal
Hughie Lee-Smith ’38. He remembers a
appeared in The New Yorker, Harper’s
from my art.”
black marks on paper come to life, as in a
freshman design class taught by the
Bazaar, and Fortune; and teaching art at
recent painting of blue jays, who seem to
renowned enamelist Kenneth Bates, sculp-
Ohio State University, the Akron Museum of
be raising a ruckus in that same garden.
ture with Walter Sinz and painting classes
Art, the former Western Reserve University,
Whatever the subject or style, he works on a piece until he feels it is unified.
and, for 25 years, at Kent State University.
O’Sickey continued to paint in a representational style even as Expressionism and Continued on page 2