Greetings friends-

I just wanted to update you all that, thanks to all of your efforts, Mr. I has fulfilled his dream of buying a home in Atlanta. He has finished moving, and is now safely with friends and looks forward to building his new life among the fantastic outsider traditions of Georgia. While this ends the immediate need for this Web site, it will remain up with his contact information, so that you can get in touch with him if you are interested in buying art, wishing well, or just welcoming him to the Atlanta area.

Thank you to all who helped make this possible.

Hello friends-

Just wanted to pass along this link to the American Visionary Art Museum installation in the windows at Bergdorf Goodman in NYC. If you're in New York, stop by and check out Mr. I's work at Bergdorf.

Hello Friends:

Mr. I came back from Salina, Kansas, on Sunday, after a series of events put him squarely in the middle of a debate over the role of public art.

For those of you who haven't heard, here's the short version, with links to the Salina Journal stories:
Mr. I was commissioned to do a public art piece involving large planters in Salina, Kansas, which was funded in part by grants from the city as part of their Main Street revitalization efforts. One or two of the city powers, including City Commissioners and the City Manager, took exception to the art and - with stunning speed - destroyed the installation. Mr. I, saying that he was there to work with the children as promised, continued to do his incredible work with the area kids, in spite of the insult. Due to his persistence and other pro-arts forces in Salina, a meeting was arranged with the Mayor and others, in an attempt to repair the relationship and make his last days in Salina a little more welcoming than his first. Thankfully, the Mayor and many others apologized, and in the end the experience turned out to be a positive one for many, and even a teaching moment.

It is a reminder, though, that public art and outsider art is often a challenge for communities. One of the best newspaper pieces I've actually ever read on this came from a Salina teacher named Brad Anderson, who wrote in a response comment that public art, like many things we pay for in our cities, is not something that is always supposed to be easy or comfortable. We don't only pay for a department of public works to fix the roads our houses are on; we acknowledge that other people's roads get service, too. Likewise, support of the arts does not mean supporting only art we like initially, it means we support a range of expression, and the artists that produce it. It's worth taking the few minutes to read Anderson's column.

Also, as you can see, we're trying a new approach with the Moving Sale. Prices are slashed, and everything must go! Take a look, and make an offer! Mr. I also has more work than we could ever hope to put on a Web site, so if you're interested in what else might be available, please feel free to contact us.

As you can see from the work page, Mr. I is having a major sale to help make his dream of moving to Atlanta a reality.

We'll be posting updates as the plans progress, but for now, those wishing to help should peruse the site and see if there are pieces that appeal to them.

For those of you interested, Mr. I is currently in Salina, Kansas, working on a Downtown Art project. Here's the writeup in the Salina Journal. There has been some ups and downs with elements of the Salina city council, so please feel free to send Mr. I words of support during this hectic and stressful time. Fortunately, the pro-art voices in Salina are speaking out and standing up for respectful treatment of artists. Please feel free to comment on the Salina stories and add your voices to those commending the apology offered for the unacceptable behavior by city commissioners.

Mr. I Plans to  Create an “Angel Garden of Imagination” for All the Children and Artists of the World

Dear Friends of Mr. Imagination,

Mr. I and his closest friends in Chicago, Bethlehem, New York, Baltimore, Houston, Atlanta, Paris, London, and Salina Kansas all agree that the time has come for him to realize his dream about finding a place where he can consolidate his art and many collections, create a living museum, and construct a angel-world of art and foliage in a large yard. Most exciting is his wish to create an Angel Garden for all the children and artists of the world to come together and bring artistic life to everything that has been thrown away and discarded.

The happy news – and Mr. I always has a way of finding peace and love amidst trying circumstances – is that he has found, with the special help of his many friends, a house and property in Atlanta Georgia that will allow for the realization of his dream. It is affordable and, best of all, includes a house with a large yard that cries out for his magic touch. He could have a dog (or even dogs) again. Angels seem to hover in the air and he has a vision that his dream can become real there. Equally important is that it is in a major metropolitan community that, unlike the much smaller Bethlehem, has a very large alternative arts community, an active interest in “outsider” art and many opportunities for selling such art (art fairs and galleries), a supportive urban community, and a welcoming group of children and adults seeking to recycle their artistic souls.

Mr. Imagination will, of course, be sorely missed in Bethlehem, but the stars have aligned to indicate that this is very much the right course of action. Ever since his devastating fire in 2008, Mr. I has been living in a rented house on the north side of Bethlehem and for many months after the fire he felt the nightmarish pangs of loss and destruction. The good news is that he has recently started to make his amazing artwork again, but the problem is that even now – more than a year later – he is still haunted by the terrible memories of the fire and the death of his beloved dog, Pharaoh.

To purchase the property, to start work on the Angel Garden and Artists’ Retreat, and to make the move to Atlanta (hopefully accomplished in September of this year) will require the special love, support, and help from all his friends – from Kansas to Pennsylvania  and from Paris and to Georgia.  We ask all of you to help in any way that you can, but most important right now is to raise sufficient funds to secure the property, to make the move, and to create the endowment for the Angel Garden. We ask all of you to contribute to a fund to make Mr. I’s dream a reality. And there are many ways that you can contribute: a) by buying some art in the very special MOVING SALE OF THE CENTURY wherein artwork from Mr. I’s personal collection will be available at special prices; b) by sending a donation to Mr. I to fund the move and Angel Garden (make checks out to “Mr. Imagination” c/o of Diane LaBelle at 54 E. Church Street, Bethlehem PA 18018); and c) by volunteering (if you are in the Bethlehem and Atlanta areas) your time and spiritual energy to making the move happen. Details and news about all of these issues – especially photos of art work for sale – is available on a newly constructed website:  

Most important is that we get this notice out to as many folks as possible and we encourage you to send it on to all of your friends and anyone who might be interested in helping. Please contact Mr. I (see contact information on the website) or Norman Girardot/Greg Heller LaBelle if you have any other suggestions on how to make this appeal as successful as possible. Thank you very much. As Mr. I would say: “Love and Peace.”

Sincerely,  Norman Girardot, and Greg Heller-Labelle in Bethlehem

: “Love and Peace.”