sad news..

one of my favorite artists since i was a kid has died -- Ernie Barnes, Jr. most people remember him for his paintings seen in the 1970s show, Good Times, especially the painting shown during the end credits called Sugar Shack. this piece in particular also doubled as an album cover for Marvin Gaye. seeing his paintings at an early age is how he quickly became an inspiration to me. later in life, i learned he had an interesting success story as well. if you'd like to check out some of his work, you can click his link under my inspirations column. it also has great info about him, which is where i turned to when writing reports on him for school. i'll definitely treasure my autographed Ernie Barnes book.