The most enduring
single image in the paintings of Aldo Luongo is that of "The
Hawk." The Hawk is a character who has evolved throughout
Luongo's career, and is his single most meaningful symbol.
Originally,
The Hawk was an homage to the artist's father, Rafael Celestino
Luongo. Aldo grew up with many of the same pressures that create
distances between father and son. Though their relationship was
not explosive, there were still gaps to be bridged. In the early
70's, Rafael Luongo died.
Out
of this tragic loss was born a new creation. While contemplating
his father, the artist realized that in many ways he was the ideal
man. A figure who appealed to both men and women, who possessed
a personality of charm, charisma, and grace, Rafael epitomized
the artist's conception of the quintessential man. What would
he have been like had he lived to be seventy years old?
Thus was born The Hawk. Though never
meant to resemble Luongo's father physically, The Hawk personifies
his spirit. He represents the appreciation of quality, the hunger
of life, and living it to the fullest. He is virile and wise,
often surrounded by friends. His essence is captured in the knowing
sparkle of his gaze.
Originally, The Hawk was not painted to
be shown, but as a personal project. However, while picking up
paintings from the studio, a delivery man mistakenly included
the first Hawk portrait in the group. Before Luongo noticed it
missing, it was sold.
As he
created further Hawk paintings, the concept began to evolve. Instead
of the future his father might have had, The Hawk became the future
the artist would like to live. The Hawk came to embody Luongo's
ideals, his notion of the good life. He began to portray him in
a variety of moods: the somber, the reflective, the exuberant. Throughout it all, the
secret lay in his eyes. People respond so positively to The Hawk
that Luongo has had numerous requests for commissions from people
who would like their portraits painted with The Hawk.
The
Hawk, as described by Luongo, has only 10 or 15 minutes left on
the clock of life, "but he's living life to the fullest and
going out in style … I want to be like him in my twilight
years." Wouldn't most of us?
