The Ghost of Walker's Gap by Sturtevant Lynne

Author:Sturtevant, Lynne [Sturtevant, Lynne]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2022-04-15T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 16

Doll Babies

My apartment was freezing. We’d reached the time of year when cold air leaked in around the windows even when the wind wasn’t blowing. I pulled out my extra blanket, tucked it around my legs, and entered “Dakota Silverheart” into my computer’s search bar. I couldn’t believe how many links came up.

The first group led to images of her paintings and articles about how she worked, who influenced her, etc. There was a video interview from 2014, two years before her death, produced by the college. It seemed like the logical place to start, but I paused before hitting “play”. It was going to be jarring to see Dakota as a living, breathing person, having seen her ghost and knowing what the future held for her.

I went to the kitchen and got a beer. Then I rearranged my blanket and started the video.

The opening shot was a panorama of the college campus that zoomed in on the William Fisk Center for the Performing Arts. Of course, I thought. That’s where Dakota would have taken classes. She may have even used one of the studios Ronnie and I walked past yesterday. Her connection to that building hadn’t crossed my mind when we were there.

An intense young man named Tristan conducted the interview. He was wearing a vintage tuxedo jacket, a red polka dot shirt, and Bermuda shorts. Dakota had on a long lavender sundress. Her blonde hair hung around her shoulders, and a tiny silver heart dangled from a chain around her neck. She was barefoot. They were seated at a picnic table under a leafy tree.

Tristan said, “Congratulations on having your work selected for the cover of American Art Collector magazine. That’s an amazing accomplishment for someone so young.”

He held up a copy of the magazine, which featured Dakota’s depiction of Bill Clinton as a McDonald’s chocolate milkshake spilled on an elaborately set dining table.

Dakota smiled. “Thank you, Tristan. I’m thrilled, honored and incredibly grateful for the opportunity to share my work with more people.”

“The editorial board of the magazine called you ‘a visionary whose realistic treatment of surreal subject matter has excited art connoisseurs and collectors worldwide.’ That’s quite a quote.”

She blushed as the breeze ruffled her hair.

“You graduated last year, right?”

She nodded.

“Tell our viewers how you gained so much notoriety so quickly.”

“A lot of it was serendipity, I suppose. It started with my Senior Art Show. I knew which paintings I wanted to hang, but I didn’t know how to price them. Dr. Charlotte Spencer from the Art History Department encouraged me to double what I’d planned to ask. She also convinced me to include two of my food portraits. Only a few people had seen them at that point.”

“It sounds like that was excellent advice.”

“The absolute best! I received positive reviews and sold three of my regular paintings. I was over the moon, Tristan.”

“I bet.”

“Then on the last day of the show, an anonymous out-of-town buyer bought both of my food portraits for triple what I was asking for them.

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