Plate

After having been drafted to serve as a military photographer during the Korean War, Leedy found his ?spiritual home? in Asian philosophy while witnessing the atrocities of war. This experience left a great impact on Leedy. Studying art and art history on the G.I. Bill after the war enabled him to meet some influential artists in New York. Wilhelm de Kooning, Jackson Pollock, and Philip Guston were among the group that impacted Leedy. These painters were known for painting in a style coined ?Abstract Expressionism?. Leedy discovered that there were similarities to Asian thought in this form of art and thus were the beginnings of Leedy?s quest for spontaneity and discovery. ?The teacher?s attitude was that if it had a finger mark, or a drop of glaze, you wiped that away, or you ground it off. And I realized with this Zen/Taoist philosophy that it was this aspect that made it unique and different than all the others.? ? Jim Leedy