Charlie Weiss: Preserving Fort Bend History One Painting at a Time

Charlie Weiss

By M.G. Angulo – 

Painting is like breathing to Richmond artist Charlie Weiss. Not just in the sense that it feels natural, but also in that being able to express himself feels necessary, like oxygen.

Although he took a 15-year break from painting, Weiss returned to the canvas two years ago, a new energy and motivation pushing him forward. “I have always painted since I was very young, taking my first art classes in junior high and high school,” Weiss said. “However, it then seemed that my art took a back seat to the everyday business of life.”

So he put down the brush for more than a decade, but keeping “a lid on the right side of the brain” doesn’t last long for a creative person. At some point that lid explodes, and all of the passion beneath it comes reeling out like wildfire – alive and uncontrollable.

 The Artistís Inspiration

“I equate my art resurgence to that of a garden hose that has been crimped with the pressure building up and then released,” Weiss said. “I got my easel down from the attic, and the work has not stopped flowing.”

Historic Fort Bend County Jail.

When inspiration hits, he finds solace in his home studios – one is in his home, the other is in his garage – where he lets his creativity take over. “I have to be myself,” he said of his painting ritual. “I must have music playing. Music for me is a direct connection to the soul, and my art is an expression of the deepest part of my being.”

Depending on the work, his music selection can vary from Mozart to Hendrix and from Alison Krauss to AC/DC. “I guess the more abstract the painting is, the louder and more rock’n the music tends to get,” he said with a smile. “So far, the family and neighbors haven’t complained about the music.” Since his return, Weiss, 54, has completed nearly 50 paintings using various techniques and mediums.

As a child in Lynchburg, Virginia, Weiss was exposed early on to the arts and has great memories of his parents taking him on numerous trips to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond, Virginia and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. “It was there that I was introduced to a creative world, laying the foundation for a deep appreciation of the visual arts,” said Weiss.

Historic Moore House.

With that foundation laid, Weiss is now making his own artistic mark upon those around him, namely in Fort Bend County. His debut into the Fort Bend art realm came last September and October when Weiss showcased a special collection of his art at the Fort Bend County Museum called A Moment in Time in Fort Bend. Many of the paintings are of buildings from the mid 1800s to the early 1900s, including the Beasley Chapel, the Moore House and the McNabb House, as well as Imperial Sugar tanks and the Farm to Market truck, which were his first two Fort Bend paintings.

It took Weiss nearly 18 months to complete the collection, which he said represents Fort Bend over a 150 year period, covering images from agriculture to law and order and from historic homes to entertainment. It was the collection that put Weiss on the map.

Weiss’ portrait of Janis Joplin.

“I moved to Fort Bend County five and a half years ago from Virginia,” Weiss said. “The Moment in Time collection gave me an opportunity to get to know the area from a unique perspective. I have taken hundreds of photos, many of the same location from different vantage points as a way of getting to know every side of the building or image. During the course of working on a painting, I begin to also look into its historical significance and background, which gives me a better understanding of the historic significance of the community.”

A Moment in Time in Fort Bend includes 15 works, with more in the making. To date, Weiss has completed two paintings of the historic court house located in Richmond, the Davis Mansion and Beasley Chapel, both located on the George Ranch property, the historic Fort Bend County Jail building, two of the Imperial Sugar mill in Sugar Land, the Moore House, the McNabb House, the Cole Theatre located in Rosenberg, Main Street Richmond, a railroad crossing in Richmond and a couple of iconic restaurant signs.

“From a historical perspective, we are living in times where so many wonderful buildings – and I am not necessarily talking about Fort Bend County – have been demolished for the sake of building bigger and better,” Weiss added. “I hope in some small way these images will help preserve a moment in time of life in our county long after I am gone.”

Understanding the Weiss Style

Weiss’ Man of Steel portrays Rosenberg Mayor Vincent Morales as Superman.

Life, Weiss said, has its way of announcing itself on his canvas. “Culturally, I am a product of the late 60s and 70s, and I like that,” Weiss said. “Music and art from particularly those decades impacted my perception and views. Those years produced some of the most fascinating times in modern history.”

In-your-face issues of the time include women’s rights, racial tension, the drug scene, the war in Vietnam and political unrest, all of which, Weiss said, “created a very revolutionary and to a degree unsettling time. The music and art reflected that turmoil.”

It was a time that would have a lasting impression on the artist, who also finds great influence from the modern art movement of the late 50s, 60s and 70s, in particular the works of Jackson Pollock, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol and realists Richard Estes and John Salt.

“I have spent a considerable amount of time developing a painterly language through which I seek to capture vitality beyond the establishment of just a mere likeness to the subject,” Weiss said.

Charlie and Kristin Weiss.

When it comes to his art, specifically his portraits, Weiss said he understands viewers like to be able to recognize people, but he pushes himself to reach beyond just recreating a look. “The subjects are transformed into contemporary images rather than exposed, their inner selves hinted at but unreadable,” he said. “The spaces the subjects inhabit are often undefined, providing an atmosphere that allows for uncertainty of emotional state. The subjects retain their integrity, and yet a sense of intimacy is evoked.”

The public had a chance to view some of Weiss’ works in April during an opening at Imperial Arts Gallery in Rosenberg. Weiss’ paintings were exhibited in Pop Goes the Art, an Urban Ink show, which is dedicated to paying homage to the art of graffiti, pop art and fusion of techniques and media that give a high-energy urban vibe.

His art at the show captured the interest of Richmond Mayor Evalyn Moore, who said, “Larry’s Restaurant is such an iconic and historic business in Richmond, and I was particularly excited with the painting of it. It is a wonderful painting by a wonderful artist.” Moore not only praised Weiss’ work, but purchased one as well. She now owns a Weiss painting of Richmond’s Historic Moore House.

But the accolades didn’t stop there; Rosenberg Mayor Vincent Morales also purchased a painting called Man of Steel, which is an image of the mayor as Superman soaring. “I have painted a wide cross section of individuals from political figures to children,” Weiss said. “I am in the process of working on a portrait of Pope Francis. This painting will be done with all of the respect in the world for someone in his position, of course, and will reflect how I believe he has become known as the ‘People’s Pope’ in today’s world.”

Additionally, Weiss continues portraits and residential work, completing two to three commissioned pieces a month that range in subjects from a local restaurant sign to families.

 The Woman Behind the Artist

As the saying goes, behind every great man stands a great woman, and if Weiss turns around, undoubtedly he’ll be looking into the eyes of his wife Kristin. “An artist has to have a supportive and patient partner for many reasons,” Weiss said. “The expense of the materials, the room it takes up in your home and the actual time of the act of painting itself. For me, the inability to turn off my brain from constantly composing paintings and images in my head even impacts my wife.”

It can be 3:00 in the morning, and Weiss will wake from a deep sleep thinking about something that would make a great painting. “While I try and keep those thoughts to myself in the early morning hours, Kristin will always be the first to ask me about the image with interest. I have told her before that I couldn’t be married to me. I love her very much. She is my best friend, partner in life and wife.”

Charlie and Kristin have been married for five years. Between the two of them, they have two sons, two daughters, a son-in-law and a granddaughter. The couple is very involved in their church home at Sugar Land Baptist Church where they are active deacons and Weiss sings in the choir. 

2-Ms Burger Sign.

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