OK, SO WHAT’S THE SPEED OF DARK?
“That is the biggest painting you’ve ever done, Sweetheart,” Brian told the kid as he stepped back from the large newly finished canvas on the wall of the Institute.
“An interesting critical opinion, Brian,” Justin laughed. “Big. Not a real professional critical assessment – but I guess I can’t argue with it either. That’s why you had to come over here to see it. It’s going right from here to the new Science High School where it will hang in a prominent place in the entry hall.”
“And you weren’t even gonna tell me about it, were you?” Brian accused him. “If somebody hadn’t let it slip in front of Mikey – and Mikey being as sharp as he always is ….”
“I would have had to tell you about it, Kinney,” Justin told him. “It was a special commission and it will be on public display like – forever – and you would have found out some time anyhow – so I had to tell you – or you’d have been mad - but I wouldn’t have told you if I didn’t have to – because I knew just what you’d say. It’s big….”
“Well I can’t help it if art was my worst subject at school, Sweetheart,” Brian defended himself. “So what am I supposed to say? It’s like – the most abstract thing you’ve ever done too. Is that better?”
“It was a commission, Mr. Kinney,” Justin informed him. “I painted what they wanted. They got what they asked for.”
“Can I ask just what it was they asked for, JT?” Brian wondered. “Without like – getting my head bitten off by the aggrieved artist.”
“You don’t know what it is, BK?” Justin seemed amused. “Gee whiz. Everybody here knew what it was right off.”
“Well I told you art was my worst subject, Baby,” Brian protested. “And abstract was the worst part of art too.”
“It’s title, Mr. Kinney, is ‘The Speed of Light,’” Justin informed him. “And the Science High School people are extremely pleased with it. They said it was exactly what they had in mind all along.”
“Well I guess those science people should know what the speed of light looks like,” Brian admitted. “I think I learned about the speed of light all right – but I never like – saw it’s picture or anything.”
“186,000 miles per second, Kinney,” Justin pontificated. “The fastest stuff in the universe ….”
“Faster than it needs to be, I suppose,” Brian replied. “But not so fast that you couldn’t figure out what it looks like.”
“Nothing could ever be that fast,” Justin verbally patted himself on the back – before moving on to perhaps more important things. “So let’s go eat, Brian. These high-level art discussions make me hungry ….”
“Like – what doesn’t?” Brian wondered as they headed toward the Institute cafeteria.
It was an hour or so later, as they were driving back toward the loft, that Brian’s intense artistic meditation on the ‘Speed of Light” painting began to bear fruit. “OK, Baby,” he asked the kid, “so what’s the speed of dark?”
“The speed of dark, Kinney?” Justin reacted with amazement. “There isn’t anything like the speed of dark. Nobody ever heard of the speed of dark ….”
“Well then let me ask you this then,” Brian pursued his point. “It’s like - day-time now and it’s light out. In a couple of hours, it will get dark. So dark must have caught up with light – or it wouldn’t get dark at all - and if light is so damn fast …?”
“OK, Kinney,” Justin laughed. “You lied to me before and you like – just admitted it. You told me art was your worst subject at school – and it wasn’t – science had to be ….”
“Oh no you don’t, Justin Taylor,” Brian chortled. “You’re just trying to change the subject – and I know why too. The great artist sitting next to me does not know what the speed of dark looks like ….”
“Very funny, Brian,” Justin grinned at him. “Wait till your next birthday.”
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