Reading Now: Sean J. Patrick Carney recalls a studio visit with late artist Jack Whitten on his blog Humor and the Abject

'During our visit, Whitten shared many stories from over the years and talked with unbridled enthusiasm about the portion of every year that he and Mary spent at their house on the Greek Island of Crete in the Mediterranean Sea. The island's isolation from Europe, Africa, and Asia, he said, resulted in a truly unique landscape with an interesting biodiversity. If I'm remembering correctly, he and Mary had olive trees that they cared for and he described in great detail their flavors that few of us would ever have the opportunity to encounter. Whitten was a gifted orator, and I think I could have listened to him talk about anything for hours; I don't even particularly like olives.'