Images proffered by artists are often inspired by angst-ridden times in a challenging world. I too have mined this territory for images and ideas that have informed my work.

Bedside Table is a different kind of piece. It is a work that was inspired by my father, Orville Chatt. His role as parent was complicated for reasons I do not need to talk about here. He faced challenges that might have left him bitter, mean or parsimonious. He was instead, a constant presence. He was supportive, kind and funny. My home was a haven. It was a place where I knew what to expect and I knew the people who shared it could be depended on. 

When it came time to empty my childhood home, I became sentimental about the most unlikely items. My siblings and I were sorting through personal belongings and separating things into stacks, things that someone might want, things to go to charity, or things to throw away. I opened my father’s bedside table and looked at its contents. I knew there was no rational reason to save the objects found there.  As I approached the garbage can, drawer in hand, I paused. I had never lived in a world where this place did not exist and it was suddenly unthinkable to see this collection of personal items cast into the waiting heap. I returned the drawer, as he left it, to the table. I now have the table and it’s contents in my home. It is as he left it. His table and its constancy has become a reminder of a man who gave me the gift of a stable and supportive upbringing and who loved his family. Bedside Table is a collection of fatherly things that remind me of my Dad. This piece is for him.

David Chatt