I received this note from a private collector who has one of Norman’s paintings, shown here. I am sharing with their permission. As you’ve read recently, Patrick’s story about Norman has helped reconnect some long-lost family members. This information further extends the tale.

JP, Glad to  share.

The painting hung in my father’s house in the south of France. I first saw it there in 1974. He must’ve been gifted it by Norman sometime during their Paris days. Both were on the G.I. Bill. My father was an aficionado of toreo and a bull runner in Pamplona and I can only assume Norman was aware of that and gave it to him for that reason. I suppose that my father could have purchased it but I think it was more of a gift between friends.

My wife and I eventually renovated the house and discarded some of the memorabilia but we liked the painting very much. At the time the house was somewhat obscure and when I took down the painting I cleaned it, using a fresh onion to gently go over the paint and I was astonished at the depth of colour and the paint strokes. We’ve kept it in a large room that gets a lot of light but where the sun doesn’t reflect directly on it.

I never had the opportunity to ask my father about the painting and we were curious about its origins. The frame is a piece of art in itself and it’s inscribed with the name Norman Jenkins. I asked old Paris friends who were there in the 1950s and one of them vaguely remembered Norman but couldn’t tell me anything about him. One day my wife was looking on the internet came across a similar painting connected to his studio in Deià and thus we got the fuller story.

I hadn’t looked at lore on Norman in 2-3 years and for some reason started looking on the internet a couple-few days ago, thus came across your father’s site.

That’s about all that I know. I’ll send you photos with details separately. You’re welcome to share.

All my best to you and Norman’s daughter.

JP

I’m the son of Patrick of Meadows.