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Aug. 14--It was a cat with blue eyes painted from a Polaroid photo that won Vito B. Kare his first big commission as a painter: $75. After that, he figured, it would be possible to do what he had always dreamed of and make a living by the brush.
"I got serious," he said laughing, recalling that first commission that started him on a path to becoming a professional painter.
This was in the 1970s in Vancouver, British Columbia, he said, 10 years after he had arrived from the Philippines. Selling that painting made him realize he could probably do better, and he began to analyze and research the work he was doing.
Several decades later, the Brownsville resident continues to paint, reaching out to the local culture for inspiration, with hopes of sharing with the community. "That's the idea," Kare said about sharing his work with his neighbors here. "You owe it to the world what your idea (of the painting) is all about."
Kare arrived in Brownsville in 1987 to do some commission work painting portraits. It was supposed to be a temporary stop, he said, but almost 20 years later, he's still here.
"I thought I'd leave for New York as soon as I'm through," he laughed. Kare's repertoire is diverse; he paints everything from cowboy and western themes to landscapes to children and historical scenes. Painting some of Brownsville's most notable history is what recently grabbed Kare's attention.
Sitting in his studio behind his house, surrounded by books and brushes, he proudly spoke about two paintings he completed in the spring.
The first one is titled "The Battle of Palo Alto" and the second, "Resaca de la Palma." Each depicts the battles that took place in those places in painstaking detail; everything from the color of the uniforms to the native vegetation to the style of weapon and the design of the flag during that time period are de-picted with vivid colors.
"I tried to make it as authentic as possible," he said, adding that he'd been doing research on the period to complete the paintings for about 10 years. "I like the authenticity of things, as near as possible as I can. I don't want to add anything that is not authentic."
Despite the great deal of time invested in the paintings, Kare still calls them "studies" because he hopes to get feedback from historians to complete even more historically accurate portrayals of the battles. He said he wants to get as close to reality as possible.
"I just love colors," he said. "I also love history."
Currently Kare is researching a project he hopes to complete on biblical themes, but he still hopes to come back to Brownsville's history one day. Mostly an oil painter, he also occasionally paints watercolor, sketches and draws cartoons.
Brownsville has been a familiar place, Kare said, and he can relate to the weather and the culture here. And after almost 20 years, there's still work to be done, he said.
"In the back of my mind, I still have a lot of ideas."
sicalderon@brownsvilleherald.com
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Copyright (c) 2006, The Brownsville Herald, Texas
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