Monday, January 10, 2022
The motto of the United States Marine Corps "semper fidelis" (always faithful) described Jim Masters to perfection. He was always faithful to God, to his country, to his family, to his church, to his community, to his friends, and to his vocation as an artist. Art, like music, is "love" and "work" -- two four-letter words, as my teacher Jean Reti-Forbes used to say so well. Jim's attention to detail in his paintings was astounding -- every brick had a nuance, every leaf a personality, every piece of wood on the side of a painted barn a complete history of its own. Even his painted shadows had meaning. I looked up to Jim and always will. He mirrored God in everything he did.
