Label
Joe McFadden (1949-2014)
Joe McFadden was known for his whimsical, slyly intellectual, and imaginary portraits of religious and literary figures that became known as "The Pencil-Neck Saints". He received more than 100 awards for his paintings and watercolors in juried exhibitions across the U.S. He said "I started painting faces, making them up, twisting them, distorting them, looking for a dialog between the painting and me. I added references to things from my life that I find important: history, literature, mythology....In many of the pieces humor plays a role, breaking the unspoken rule about combining humor with fine art." McFadden arrived in Tallahassee in the late 1960s to attend Florida State University, and often exhibited at LeMoyne Center for the Visual Arts.