djr-2021-12-05-liv-column-rsj-p1

An alligator block print by Walter Anderson hung over the mantel in the St. John home for decades.

There are three constants that have been ever-present in my life from day one – food, music and art. For the purposes of this column – and the release of my latest coffee table book written with Anthony Thaxton, “Walter Anderson: The Extraordinary Life and Art of the Islander” – I will focus on art.

Tragedy struck my family early. My father died at 36. I was six. My brother was ten. My mother, who had earned an undergraduate degree in art a decade earlier, went back to school, received her master’s degree, and began teaching art to support our family. She continued to teach art for the next 50 years.

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ROBERT ST. JOHN is a restaurateur, chef and author. Find his recipe for Shrimp & Okra Gumbo at robertstjohn.com.

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