Gen A Kids Exhibit

Artist Dave Fuller is very good using art to tell stories. For the month of August, at the Marco Center for the Arts, he chose 12 paintings to share his commentaries on Generation Alpha (Gen A Kids), the age group born between 2010 to the present. They have never known a world without social media and smartphones. Fuller’s wife Joanie wrote the narrative for each painting and brought them to life adding a verbal spark. 

According to Fuller, “I love to paint stories about everyday life. Each acrylic painting is a slice of time and situation. My mentor Norman Rockwell defined the genre, and his magazine covers made us think, laugh, and cry and I am hooked on that.”

Fuller was born in Cleveland, Ohio but spent most of his life in Atlanta, Georgia. After high school in 1957, he studied at the High Museum of Art under Carly Craig and Maxine Yalowitz, and both made lasting impressions on him.

 “It soon became clear that a career in art needed to give way to the economic realities of today’s world,” Fuller added. In 1962, Fuller graduated from Georgia Tech and began his rewarding life as an entrepreneur. Thirty-two years later, Fuller sold his last business and found himself in Naples, Florida. At long last, Fuller was back to art – and this time for good!

Norman Rockwell, Fuller’s mentor, was born in 1894 and was known as the Lost Generation (1883-1910) as they came of age during the First World War. This generation produced famous literary names such as James Joyce, C.S. Lewis, and Ezra Pound.

David belongs to the Traditionalist or the Silent Generation (born 1925-1945), known for being hardworking and disciplined, and most of them grew up during the Great Depression and during World War II.  

Fuller, just like his mentor, Norman Rockwell, focuses his art on ordinary people sharing relatable experiences on canvas. It not only tells stories but also conveys messages. There is love, a wide range of emotions, loss, childhood memories, and sometimes subliminal messages for the viewers.

The story for Car Wash Days, circa 2013 says, “In our neighborhood, some Saturdays are car wash days. We four kids have Poochie with us and big sister waves a sign in case neighbors want us to wash their car. Soon, a line of cars forms and the day turns into a helpful, yes, but hilarious, wet and soapy party.”

In First Fish, circa 2022 – “Buster just caught his first fish, and he’s hoping it stays on the hook. So many times, he and Gusto have fished with no luck, but today, they hit the jackpot. Let’s see if Buster can take his prize off the hook before the pelican swoops in and snatches it.” The background shows pelicans flying low, eyeing the fish.

David’s exhibit showcases the power of the everyday, trivial and mundane events that you don’t ordinarily stop to take notice of, like the emotion his grandson had after coming in second place in a bike race.

Losing is the title of the canvas. The face on the canvas said it all. “I don’t know what happened. My bike was okay and I trained and I ate right for weeks. I guess the other guy was just better and faster. But I need to recover and make myself try again.”  

David Fuller is a storyteller, and you can view his Gen A Kids Exhibit at the Center for the Arts, Rush Gallery through the first week of September. The Marco Island Center for the Arts is located at 1010 Winterberry Drive, Marco Island.