CARSON CITY, Nev.-
A Carson City barber and amateur painter, miffed that an out-of-state artist was chosen to paint Gov. Kenny Guinn’s official portrait, has taken his scorn on a 50-state road show.
When Adam Baker learned earlier this year that an artist from Washington would paint the official portrait of Nevada’s outgoing governor, Baker took his own rejected portrait of Guinn to a bathroom in the state Capitol–and photographed it above a urinal.
Since then, he’s taken the painting on a cross-country jaunt, photographing it above capitol urinals in the contiguous 48 states.
It took him a month, half of his savings, a lot of peanut butter sandwiches and Red Bull energy drinks, he said.
Baker said he flew to regional airports, then “rented a minivam, took my sleeping bag and camped at all the Wal-Marts I could find.”
Next week, he’ll take the painting to Hawaii and Alaska for the last two urinal stops, then return to his barber shop that also serves as his art studio.
Baker calls the trip “Kenny’s Big Adventure.”
Guinn’s official portrait, which will hang in the Capitol, is being painted by Michele Rushworth of Sammamish, Wash. Rushworth, selected in September, came with experience, having painted the official portrait of Washington Gov. Gary Locke.
Baker doesn’t deny Rushworth’s talent.
“She’s an awesome artist,” he said. But he added, “I feel my governor should have represented me and not somebody from Washington.”
His main beef, Baker said, is that there are many talented artists in Nevada who could have done a great job.
“Frankly, I don’t care who paints his painting,” Baker told The Associated Press. “But if he goes out of state to do it, it should come out of his own pocket, not the taxpayers.”
Baker, 42, who paints portraits of his barbershop customers, offered to paint Guinn for free in 2003. He was invited to the Capitol, where he photographed the governor as a basis for his portrait.
Baker said his preliminary picture was returned to the barbershop. Later, he entered the competition to become the governor’s artist. Rushworth won.
The reason for not selecting Baker was simple, said Guinn spokesman Steve George.
“It wasn’t very good,” George said of Baker’s sketch. “The fact that he wants to display it in a restroom speaks a lot of what he thinks about his own work.”
When his 50-state tour is complete, Baker said he plans to raffle his portrait of the governor and donate the proceeds to charity. He hopes to raise more than the $20,000 allocated by state lawmakers to commission the portrait.
“I’m going to make the money go back to Nevada, where it should have stayed to begin with,” he said.
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Information from: Reno Gazette-Journal,
