2nd July Flasher - 3 POVs and a story by Vee

Incident: Art Exhibit
Three points of view:
Artist: I am Reginald MacDonald and I am one of the most successful portraitists in the country today.
Why, you may ask, am I so successful? I’ll tell you.
Every artist has his or her own distinctive style of painting. My own, honed after ten years of hard work and imagination, is to combine photographic honesty with abstract art. This may sound impossible, but I assure you it’s not. It may impossible for you; it’s not impossible for me.
You see, it’s all in the eyes. Eyes don’t lie. Noses and cheekbones and hairlines can mislead an artist about a person’s true character, but not the eyes. Many a lovely woman or distinguished man, blessed with high cheekbones and fine facial planes, is an interior bitch or bastard. But if he or she has great eyes, I know that person is worthy of my best work.
Therefore, I paint the eyes with obsessive honesty, and the rest of the face with abstract imagination.
I cleared a million dollars last year, after taxes.
Model: I am Rona Martin. I was, like, real happy, when my husband, Len, hired that stud muffin, Reginald MacDonald, to paint my portrait six months ago.
After all, I am the perfect model, being twenty-five years old and beautiful. Now don’t be shocked. I have always believed modesty is a form of lying. (Not that I haven’t been known to throw a lie or two around.)
I’m married to an older guy who is a banker. He is so rich that he can afford to hire expensive portrait painters.
I know Len didn’t marry me for my brains or sterling character; I guess it’s no secret that sixty-year old men are suckers for young blonde women who know how to flatter them. But I didn’t break up his marriage. It was over by the time I met him in California, where I was like, you know, a cocktail waitress and he was attending a convention.
Maybe I’m not madly in love with him. So sue me.
Husband: I am Len Martin, and I love my wife. That’s my present wife, Rona. My first wife, Buffy, divorced me three years ago due to an unfortunate incident that has nothing to do with this story. She was pretty enough, but felt entitled to everything she wanted, including me. She had no appreciation at all. Used to criticize me, day and night. Drove me nuts.
But Rona never criticizes or complains. And she doesn’t mind my gun collection, either.
Buffy bitched about having all those guns around all the time. See what I mean?
Story:
Newspaper Headline and Article:
LOCAL MAN SHOOTS PAINTING
One of Malden’s most influential citizens, banker Leonard Martin, was arrested last night while attending the opening of a new exhibit at ArtSmart, the prestigious art gallery on Smith Street. Mr. Martin was formally charged by the police with the willful destruction of property, valued at over twenty thousand dollars.
This morning, Mr. Martin was released on bail and is now at home awaiting further developments in the case. “I have no comment,” he told this reporter.
According to his lawyer, Samuel Adams, Mr. Martin will not issue a statement until the case is resolved.
Our art and film critic, Jane Rawlings, attended last night’s opening, and hoped to meet Mr. MacDonald in person. For this reason, she arrived early and intended to stay until closing.
According to Ms. Rawlings, Mr. and Mrs. Martin entered the gallery about 8:00 PM, and immediately sought out the artist. Then the couple, accompanied by MacDonald, went to view the centerpiece of the exhibit, a portrait of Mrs. Martin commissioned by Martin six months ago. It was the couple’s first glimpse of the painting, since the artist refuses to allow his models to see their portraits before opening night
Ms. Rawlings trailed them to the portrait. She noticed that Mr. Martin quickly became agitated upon studying the painting.
According to her, “The old guy turned as red as a whole can of beets!”
He then proceeded to threaten Mr. MacDonald with a raised fist, screaming, “How could you do this to my beautiful Rona?”
MacDonald, she said, simply looked perplexed.
Mr. Martin grabbed his wife’s arm and stalked out of the building. The gallery proprietor, Jack Hawkins, addressed the crowd, “I think Mr. Martin isn’t feeling well,” he said, “So let’s all go back to enjoying the evening.”
Ms. Rawlings then carefully observed the painting. She said, “You know, I am the president of the local Film Society. One of my favorite old movies is `Laura’. And the best way I can describe the painting of Ms. Rawlings is to say it’s an anti-Laura.”
This reporter is also a film buff and I knew immediately that she was referring to the old movie with Gene Tierney, in which a magnificent and life-like portrait of the main character is the central theme.
I asked Ms. Rawlings for more detail.
“Well, when you first look at the portrait of Mrs. Martin, you see a beautiful woman in a blue gown. Then, you realize one side of her face is out of whack with the other, you know? And her eyes were off kilter, too. And instead of pupils in her eyes, she had little dollar signs. It was unreal, but a fine portrait.”
In about a half an hour, Ms. Rawlings said, Mr. Martin returned to the gallery without his wife, but with a shotgun. Men and women scattered in every direction, and even dived under the wine and cheese table. Martin marched right up to his wife’s portrait, raised the shotgun and fired it. He shot the portrait right between the eyes.
According to Ms. Rawlings, “ The noise nearly blew my ears out. And the residue of gunpowder permeated the entire gallery, people started to gag. Then the security guards took the gun away from him, and he didn’t resist at all. Someone called the police and they took him away. He was as docile as a baby. It was one exciting evening.”
It is rumored that MacDonald has taken a trip to London, and will be gone for some two or three months, and is therefore not available for comment.