Gordon to be in Hall of Fame
Apr. 26—Patrick (p.s) Gordon first picked up a paint brush in Claremore in his mother Janelle's art studio — an activity that would quickly become his life's passion.
"All human beings have the need or desire to be creative," Gordon said. "We all need to express ourselves creatively whether that's how you dress, how you cut your hair, how you work in your yard, how you arrange and decorate your home. It's all about the human urge to create. It's universal. I just figured out a way to make a living at it for all these years."
Next week, Gordon will join Bob Blackburn and Lee Gilstrap in being inducted into the Claremore Hall of Fame at 6 p.m. on May 6 at the Hard Rock Casino. Tickets are on sale for the event at claremoremoh.org. Tickets can also be purchased by calling the Museum of History at (918) 923-6490 or visiting the museum at 121 N. Weenonah Ave.
They will join inspirational figures like Dr. Keith Ballard, J.M. Davis, Patti Page, W.R. Howell, Elizabeth Gordon, Will Rogers, Stuart Roosa and more in the Hall of Fame and bring the number of inductees in the Claremore Hall of Fame to 26 members. This year will be the first time Claremore Museum of History, the J.M. Davis Arms & Historical Museum and the Oklahoma Military Academy Museum are teaming up to host the event.
Gordon's art is enjoyed by millions around the world. He has received awards from the National Endowment of the Arts, the Metropolitan Opera Company of New York, the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition, and the Arts and Humanities Council of Tulsa. Gordon was also inducted into the Tulsa Hall of Fame in 2013.
Gordon said from the time he started writing, he knew he loved art.
"It's hard to explain but when I started writing, when I started drawing with a pencil it was like I knew what that pencil was for and it was for more than just making letters," he said.
Gordon's mother Janelle was a huge part in him becoming an artist, he said. She was a self-taught artist and encouraged Gordon to reach his potential.
"It wasn't that I wasn't surrounded by the possibility," Gordon said.
Gordon said his main medium of art is painting, especially watercolor and oil. For around 20 years of his career, Gordon painted large three and a half feet by five feet realistic watercolor paintings.
Gordon's father, Jack Sr., was a lawyer in Claremore and developed property on the side. Jack built a shopping center across the street from the second Walmart in America, which happened to be in Claremore, Gordon said. At the end of the center, Gordon's father had an empty office which Jack allowed Gordon to use to show art.
Gordon sold his first painting at the age of 12 for $60 to a woman named Dena Bassman.
"It was just the most fun I have ever had," he said. "When she wrote me that check I thought, 'you know, I could do this for the rest of my life,' and I never did another thing."
He owned a gallery in downtown Claremore right next to the Hotel Will Rogers called Strawberry Fields: A Gallery with his friend Jackie. He said he remembers how fun it was at 15 to be selling art in his hometown.
"Even in the Claremore Progress I can remember there was a picture in the paper," he said. "They came and took a picture of me at the gallery... that's when I was 15."
Gordon said he is touched to be asked to come back to where his career started and to be honored in the Claremore Hall of Fame. He will join his aunt Elizabeth Gordon in the Hall of Fame. She was the first female mayor of Claremore.
"Being asked to come back to Claremore, I find it shocking and sweet," he said. "I'm an unusually different kind of person and I was so loved and supported by the city of Claremore and my family. It really caught me off guard when they asked me this."
