Ed Epstein is a portrait artist of some renown in these parts. But painting has comprised only a fraction of Ed’s artistic life. As a kid in the fifties he hitch hiked across the country with only a banjo and a few bucks. He fell in love with the Bach cello suites and spent the next twenty years mastering the cello so he could play them. Ed has designed and built woodstoves, houses, and when his son showed interest in fishing, Ed built a boat so they could get out to that stand of reeds…where the bass are. Ed Epstein’s whole life has been an art project.
In this hour, we talk about the mysterious process of portrait painting…it’s difficulties and occasional satisfactions. But mostly in this hour, we talk about boats. Building them, sailing them for years, and what became of Ed’s beloved thirty foot schooner, Ruby.
The beautiful photograph of Ed Epstein was taken by photographer Andrew Kline. More of his work can be seen here.
More of Ed Epstein’s work can be seen here.
Music this hour: The Cello Suites, by J.S. Bach, performed by Jan Vogler.
Unedited audio from the interview
There is a whole section of our interview that is not in this show, but well worth listening to, particularly if you’re interested in folk music. In it, Ed talks about his first forays out of New York City, and hitchhiking across the country in the early fifties with his banjo and I realized if I want my kid to have any sort of musical interests, my kid needs that, to see a few real live music legends himself, in person. Here it is:
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Self portrait from a picture taken of Ed in the early fifties.
The Sally Rubin
Jimmy the Iceman De Piro
Pan Trio
The Juniper Island, an 18′ standing lug yawl
Ed and Aryeh on the Sally Rubin, @1988
Where to start !
I loved every part of this; The conversations about art, boat building and cruising are all insightful, enlightening and entertaining.
Even the last days of Ruby, sad as they were to talk about, capture much of the essence of a remarkable guy.
Some might take exception to some of the decisions he made, but no one will fail to be impressed with Ed’s reflections when faced with the ultimate cruising nightmare
What a life and what a conversation – brought to life by a remarkable interviewer!
As terrific as the piece put up on Rumblestrip is, it is imperative (I think) that you listen to the entire, unedited piece by following the link to Ed’s art work and then the link at the end in the last sentence called “Unedited from Ed Epstein on the Road”.
I loved this. I checked out everything on his website, listened to the unedited version and didn’t even know that there was a snowstorm going on outside. A great evening, a fabulous interview, a man who’s lived life fully and who’s lucky to be able to tell his story and tell it well he did. Thank you both for a most memorable evening.
As a sailor I recognized a certain kindred restlessness in Ed, and a boat has always been my perfect vehicle to both restrain and nurture it. Trapped between wind and waves you quickly learn you have to set your foolish wants aside and give yourself over to rules, and a pace of living, you have had no say in setting, or you get nowhere. The reward for making the leap is a lifelong want for more. I imagine it must be much the same when you pick up a brush and canvas, or a bow and cello, or maybe even a microphone and a list of ever evolving questions. Nicely done Erica!
My world has just expanded. Sitting here beside the wood stove watching the full moon rise while the temperature drops to minus 10º, listenting to the true life undertakings and adventures of Ed as he repsonds to your intelligent and insightful questions, I feel that I have travelled out to sea, faced death and come back to shore. What a fantastic string of experiences, what a great life! During the first part of the interview I scrolled through Ed’s portraits and was delighted to see that he has captured the essence of many people I know (my favorite portrait is the one of Andrew Klein). Thank you Erica and thank you Ed.