Art in public

Makeshift street gallery features artists of all walks

The alley was sandwiched between two walls of red brick. There were a few First Friday art crawlers perusing the work, all of it sized to fit in a JanSport. Some was pen and ink, some marker, some pencil. All works featured sharp edges and strong lines between one plane and the next, even the human faces.

That’s where I met David Scharpt. He wore a plaid shirt, unbuttoned; a grey handlebar mustache slept on his upper lip. He seemed eager in light of the evening’s attention, that these sidewalk strollers were, for once, looking at instead of through him. Scharpt was the artist whose work hung on those walls. He has been homeless more than two years.

Last year, Scharpt gave himself a challenge. “I wanted to see how much artwork I could produce in a year using all-donated material, zero budget, living on the street, packing everything on my back,” he said. “I had to work in a smaller format, but I compensated just with the materials I could get. Sometimes I had only one pen and paper plates, but I was still doing art.” The result was what was hanging in the alley that evening, more than 250 original works. He pointed to the multitude of drawings and handpainted t-shirts. “This doesn’t even reflect or show all the pieces because I live on the streets,” Scharpt said. Some were stolen; others, he had to sell.

Local art teacher Julie Clark helped organize the show. She is part of a group unofficially called The Collective. Clark said the group wanted a frill-free, juror-less, relaxed art show to display meaningful work. It’s Clark’s goal to make art accessible, even if that means turning an alley into a gallery.

Last October, The Collective held a show on the statistics of homelessness, a natural causeway to the highlighting of Scharpf’s work. “We decided that his voice needed to be heard. His story needed to be told … he shows that people living on the streets of Tulsa can still be productive members of the community,” Clark said.

Scharpf said most of his art was created while he lived among the homeless community —in parks, shelters, on the streets of downtown—and half of his inventory calls the Brady Arts District its birthplace. Scharpf smiled and said his friends, some of them homeless, are witnessing his ambition. “I’ve grown to love the homeless people and their needs. If they can lift themselves out of the ashes, is that not encouragement for the rest? Hell, I don’t want to be on the streets, but I want to get out using my talent, using my art.”

I inquired about the hand-painted t-shirts with phrases like, “TPD Stop Harassing Me” and “Tulsa Criminal Justice Bleeds the Disfortunate”; he didn’t comment on his motivation behind the pointed statements. Scharpf took names and numbers at the show that night from those interested in buying his work. Those who waited will have to find him “Where’s Waldo”-style in the Brady Arts District, still his hangout. I left a crush of new patrons of Scharpf’s art that night in the alley, gathered in the space under the city lights.

Scharpf frequents the Tulsa Day Center for the Homeless. Sandra Lewis, executive director there, said those who wish to donate art supplies for Scharpf should bring them to the Center in a bag with his name on it. The Day Center, at 415 W. Archer Street, hosts an art program for the homeless.

ART HAPPENINGS

SCULPTURE CHANDELIERS //Learn to create wire chandeliers over the course of two Saturdays. Instruction by artist Cathryn Thomas. Cost is $70-75. Call Cindy Williams to register // 7/12 and 7/19; Henry Zarrow Center for Art and Education; 124 E. M.B. Brady Street; 918-631-4400

WARPED WEFTS // An invitational show presenting the work of local weavers as well as traditional weavings with demonstrations // 7/11 through 8/24; 108 Contemporary Gallery; 108 E. M.B. Brady St.; 918-895-6302

BOB BARTHOLIC // Artworks of the late well-known Tulsa painter and sculptor will be on display in the Brady Arts District // 7/4 through 7/26; TAC Gallery; 9 E. M.B. Brady Street; 918-592-0041

PASSAGES & IN THE WAKE OF THE WATERFRONT // Tulsa ceramic artist Virginia Harrison explores the use of boats in her art to represent transformation, adventure, and hope while Majorie Atwood, who practices in several paint mediums, uses symbolism in her works of self-exploration // through 7/31; M.A. Doran Gallery; 3509 S. Peoria Ave.; 918-748-8700