Man Taking a Leek on a Tiled Wall for a Walk

There are times I paint a painting for no reason other than the delight of a silly or absurd word. Sometimes, it works in reverse. While we were living in Madrid, I began working on an image of a man taking his pet shallot for a walk. I asked my wife, Carole, if she would buy a shallot so I could finish the painting.
“Can’t you use a green onion?” she asked.

“No,” I said, “that’s a silly pet. Nobody would have a green onion for a pet.”

Carole looked for weeks. I think she even had regiments of her friends scouring surrounding counties for shallots. There were no shallots anywhere in Madrid. I think they even checked parts of Barcelona.

Finally one day, Carole came home triumphant and excited. “I’ve found what you wanted,” she said and handed me a paper sack from the new grocery store.

It was just a bunch of leeks.

“No, that is not right,” I said, returning the sack. “These are leeks, not shallots.”

Carole looked me square in the eye, handed the leeks back and said, “James, finish the painting.”

So, that’s how “Man Taking a Leek on a Tiled Wall for a Walk.” The play on words came after the fact.