Mementos

Mickey Myers and Sister Mary Corita in the Social Hall of Immaculate Heart College, Los Angeles, Fall 1965. Corita's classes were assembling an exhibit, “Peace on Earth,” for the windows of the IBM Building on Madison and 57th Street for installation in December, 1965. Mickey and Paula McGowan were student leaders of the project.

The summer-long project of re-painting the Gas Tank had just concluded and the tank was about to be re-dedicated when Teresa Myers, Mickey's sister, snapped this picture in October 1992. Originally, there had been two gas tanks, one painted with Corita's rainbow design, and one left blank (white) after Corita's original concept for the second tank was rejected.

Twenty years later, when a second tank was no longer required, the original tank, the rainbow tank, was demolished.  Boston Gas hired Mickey Myers to supervise the re-painting of the rainbow design on the second tank.  

The actual painting of the tank was accomplished by Bob Okerfelt of Duxbury, MA, whose father had painted the original tank.  Weather permitting, Okerfelt and his crew ascended to each days specified area on a painter's pulley, braving sudden changes in the wind and a narrow window of time available to paint.  Myers communicated with the Okerfelt Team by walkie-talkie.

For the dedication this was as dressed up as anyone had been that summer on the site, due to blazing heat and technical gear.  Still, the hardhats were required as seen in this picture.  

Mickey Myers, Corita’s sister and Director of Corita Prints in North Hollywood Mary Catherine Downey, Gallery Assistant Gladys Collins, CPA Jay Levien, Corita herself, Mary Catherine’s husband, Frank Downey, my mother and future gallery director Lucile Myers and Corita’s Portland Oregon gallery director, Joyce Patterson.

This gathering of Corita’s “crew” took place in the late 1970s, photographed in front of Corita Prints, her gallery and headquarters in North Hollywood, California.

The event that brought them together was the presentation of an award bestowed on Corita from the Immaculate Heart Community.