The gift had been passed down across generational lines.
Patricia A. Good Payne never knew her grandfather; he died before she was born. But whenever she picks up a paintbrush, a calligraphy pen or a sketching pencil, she can feel his influence. His talent as a sign painter persists in her work.
Only recently did she learn there’s a word to describe what she’s experienced — atavism, or the recurrence of a trait passed down from previous generations.
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“When I found out that word, it clicked,” she said. “Atavism skips a generation, and that talent came from him.”
Payne has used this concept as a comprehensive look at her artistic career. “Atavism Displayed: Grandfather’s Gift Persists” will feature a variety of paintings, drawings, calligraphy and other works of art from throughout her life.
The southside resident’s exhibition will debut at the Southside Art League gallery Feb. 1 and will be on display for the entire month.
Payne’s artwork ranges from watercolor renditions of Indiana landscapes and rustic barns to bold acrylics of everyday scenes. The view through the bare limbs of a stand of trees is stark against the deep blue Oklahoma sky.
An oil painting of a crab leg, corn and potato boil seems so realistic, you can almost smell the melted butter and Old Bay seasoning.
“I like bright, vibrant colors,” she said. “I take photos of things that interest me. It’s just a sixth sense when I find something I like.”
Payne knew from an early age that she was interested in art. She distinctly remembers being a little girl, and on Christmas morning, being overjoyed to see an oil paint set underneath the tree.
Her happiness soon turned to heartbreak when she realized that the set was not meant for her.
“I was so disappointed because it wasn’t mine,” she said. “I was too young to realize that it was unwrapped; it wouldn’t have been mine anyway.”
At Lafayette Jefferson High School, she used to use her study hall time to go to the art room making posters.
Payne graduated from Ball State University in 1956 with a degree in art education. She also studied calligraphy at Purdue University.
She created book covers, advertising and worked as a commercial artist. The graceful, stylized letters are a clear throwback to the work of her grandfather. Nathan Stanley Good was a sign painter in Lafayette in the early 1900s.
“Long before they had paper signs, he’d just paint on the side of the building or on the windows of office buildings or doctors offices,” she said. “I still have some silver leaf and gold leaf that was his, and brushes that he had.”
Payne hadn’t ventured into painting until recently, when she joined the Southside Art League and started taking watercolor classes. That has broadened into a focus on acrylic painting.
Her work has resulted in a number of individual awards.
A painting entered into the Hoosier Salon, one of Indiana’s oldest nonprofit artists’ organizations, impressed officials at the Indiana State Museum enough that they purchased it in 2011. The brightly colored caboose is more pop art than realism.
Payne belongs to the Calligraphy Guild of Indiana, the Hoosier Salon and the Watercolor Society of Indiana, as well as being a member of the Southside Art League.
A multitude of watercolor and acrylic paintings will make up a bulk of the exhibition, though she also will include binders filled with more than 50 years of calligraphy in the exhibition.
“I didn’t think I’d have this many, but it really does serve as a retrospective,” she said.
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“Atavism Displayed: Grandfather’s Gift Persists”
What: A collection of watercolor, acrylic and calligraphy artwork by southside Indianapolis artist Patricia A. Good Payne.
When: Feb. 1 to 25
Where: Southside Art League gallery, 299 E. Broadway St., Greenwood
Hours: Gallery hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday.
Reception: An opening reception will be held from 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday at the gallery. Light refreshments will be served, and sales will benefit the Southside Art League, Our Lady of Grace Monastery and Indiana Conference of United Methodist Women.
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