Stephen's Life and Art

Stephen Norman Lynch, Artist and Illustrator
August 28, 1947 - November 1, 1973

Early Spanish Galleon Oil on canvas

"Once there were two brothers who loved. One painted pictures of worlds inside his mind. The other mused and explored nuts, bolts, wires, batteries and bugs. When the one who painted pictures died he came to the other in a dream and shared his gift. Now the one who lives, a master of the web, shares the gift with all the world. It was perhaps meant to be this way from the beginning. For had the story not come to be told this way... then who would know?"

Terrence A. Lynch
22 Nov. 1997

Stephen's Inspiration

I have told you how my dearest brother, Stephen, died. Now I shall tell you how he lived, for to focus upon his death would be to negate his life, and after all, ones life is what we should remember most.

My first memories of Stephen are long forgotten. I say that because I know from the very moment that my eyes opened Stephen was there watching over his little brother. His blue eyes looked down upon me with a love and affection which grew over the years, and grows yet in death as tears come to mind when I think of dear Stephen, the galleons he painted, the imaginary worlds he dreamed and envisioned, the contrast of fantasy and reality which he showed me from early in our childhood.

Bronco Rider Oil on canvas

Our years as children were filled with play. Those were the happiest of times. As my father was in the Army we lived in many different places. I believe this may have drawn Stephen and I closer, as we had only each other's friendship to endure all the moves. Our brotherly love thus seemed somehow to be eternal. It also gave us strength to stand our ground in times of conflict, when other children would have cowered under the fist of a bully. Two brothers as one could turn back the biggest bullies. This sticking together made us tough, gave us courage. We could ride the waves, stay on the bronco when times got tough. It indeed made a difference in both our lives to have a brotherly bond.

Stephen and I learned how to deal with bullies at an early age, given my eldest brother, Carl Gregory, was a bully. He would try to beat and bully me and Stephen into submission. Greg had a terrible temper and almost anything would set him off. If he did not like a remark, he would let you know with a fist in the face! As Greg was the eldest of four boys, and the largest, he was able to beat and bully his smaller brothers. My own response was to fight back with words so perhaps Greg's bullying was a factor in my learning how to express my thoughts and feelings. But I often have wondered if Greg's bullying could have also been a factor in why Stephen developed a speech impairment at such a young age. Stephen was beat and bullied by Greg from the day he was born, just as Greg tried to do the same with me. But I was always able to take his punches and fire back with words which angered him even more. Its a wonder Stephen and I survived our childhood with Greg. He was brutal. He even once threw me into a patch of stinging neetles, knowing that I had a bad reaction to such poisonous plants. I think Greg was trying to kill me practically since the day I was born and had it not been for the intervention of my parents, I hate to think of what may have happened.

Greg's terrible beating and bullying behavior continued into adult life. It may have also been a factor which contributed to the deep bond and love Stephen and I developed from an early age. Greg's beating and bullying did not stop until as teens, Stephen came to me after one of Greg's enraged attacks, and asked that we form a defense pact, such that the next time Greg lit into either of us, the other would jump in and come to their defense and rescue. It only took one time for this tactic to stop Greg's swinging fist from being able to beat Stephen into submission, as Greg could not fight us both and win. That last great battle took place at our home in Jacksonville, Alabama. Greg started hitting and beating on Stephen in the livingroom and I was near by, so I jumped in to help Stephen. For the first time in his life, Greg found that he could not beat Stephen into submission, as now he was fighting both of his younger brothers at once! This last fight was, in fact, after Greg had been in the military and done duty in Vietnam. At that time Greg was not only still a bully, but a trained killer, so his fists might be considered weapons, and the very fact that he would turn them agaist his younger brothers indicates a depth of mental illness or derrangement I as a loving person have never quite been able to comprehend? How can one brother so hate his other brothers that he wants to beat, bully and destroy their lives? It is, perhaps, a form of mental illness, ill temperament taken to the extreme, like when a dog goes mad, such that one's temper takes control of their behavior and they lash out with beating and bullying to take power and control. Greg's temperament was such that he would respond with violence at the least remark, should it not agree well with him. Saying anything could set Greg off: calling him a "bully," "red head," or just saying, "Stop it!"

Greg's behavior did not seem to be simple sibling rivalry; rather, it was pathetic, if not pathological behavior. Later this same mad dog psychosis as I call it, this rage behavior, may have played a factor in Greg's trying to have me locked away when I tried to stop his kidnapping of Larry, my brother who has mental retardation. Simply put, Greg's beating and bullying behavior probably had a deep effect upon Stephen's life, being a factor related to his speech impairment, and contributing to Stephen's early introversion, such that Stephen would spend much of his time drawing, living in imaginary worlds that he would create with a pencil or pen. It also drew me and Stephen closer as we could never bonded strongly with Greg the same way we bonded with and loved each other. How could Stephen and I ever love most deeply a brother who beat and bullied us since the day we were born? What is ever worse, Greg never expressed any regret, remorse or desire for others to forgive him for his beating, bullying and battering behavior. He acted as though without conscience! Being in power and control always seemed the only thing Greg wanted. So the day came when I could simply not accept nor tolerate him as my brother anymore and signed a decree or Revocation of Kinship to that effect! Certainly I realize that there is currently no way you can legally divorce a brother, but the laws need to be reformed and revise that his can be possible. When a person has a brother who is has a behavior disorder which results in vilent, threatening behavior, is a criminal or has some other serious mental condition which causes them to act in a hurtful or harmful manner, you should be permitted to legally cut off all relations with that sibling, such that they may not walk into a court and give a judge a fallacious petition to have you put away, when it is them who should be locked away, as they simply cannot control their temperament, may be a psychotic liar or may have committed a crime. Revocation of kinship should be made legal for these and/or other sited reasons and this is an issue the legislatures of all states should consider.

Stephen began drawing as a child. He seemed fascinated by history and as an adolescent sketched Napoleonic War scenes rich in detail of costume and weaponry. As children we lived in France for three and a half years, an experience which brought European culture into our lives. Experiencing country castles of the Middle Ages, visiting Paris and the Louve, seeing the work of the Old Masters, were all early experiences which effected Stephen's art. He fell in love with ancient times, with the days of the Roman Empire, with the Middle Ages and with the spirit of the Renaissance, themes that would grace his art until the day he died.

Stephen with his mother, Faye S. Lynch, Montgomery, Alabama 22 August, 1954. Photo by Sue Lynch, Stephen's Grandmother. Stephen enjoyed role playing games from an early age. Here he is seen holding and posing with a toy metal gun. As children we would play cowboys and indians, shoooting and killing each other over and over. Of course it was all make believe. We would also play war with rubber model Army men, tanks, jeeps and other war weapon toys. Stephen would also draw whole battle scenes. At the time this picture was taken, Stephen's father, an officer in the US Army, was stationed in Korea. The photo seen was actually sent to his father with the inscription, "Had to swipe this one from Stephen to be able to send it to you. He's been setting an hour admiring his pose. Sue's a pretty good photographer, isn't she? The stumps are from the big tree which we miss so much." There had been a heavy thunder storm and a bolt of lightening hit a very large tree and literally split it in half such that it had to be cut up into stumps (croped from this restored photograph) which made nice yard stools.

Stephen was also inspired by popular movies such as Moby Dick and The Alamo. I remember Stephen sketching scenes from these and other movies: Texans battling Santa Anna and Ahab hunting the great white whale. This fascination with movie themes continued throughout Stephen's life. In high school he spent more time drawing Clint Eastwood spagetti western pictures than studying. But perhaps his greatest inspiration came from the animated films of Walt Disney. I have no doubt that had Stephen lived he would have fulfilled his dream of becoming an old master... as it was Stephen died a young master.

Toy Shop Oil on canvas

Another factor which influenced Stephen's life was the fact he had a speach impediment. The only time he did not stutter and stammer was when he was singing along with the guitar or very relaxed. I believe this may have effected his early adult life, as he could relax when drinking alcohol or smoking pot and then would not be self conscious of his stuttering. This made it more easy for Stephen to be comfortable in the presence of women which he adored. It also made Stephen more acceptable to experimenting with hallucinogenic drugs. He had done psychedelic psilocybin mushrooms on several occassions and may have even tried orange sunshine acid. This was during the period we lived in Gainesville, Florida for the couple of years right before Stephen died. It may also explain why Stephen would have taken the window pain acid Jeff Wilkerson gave him. I believe Stephen used drugs to escape the self consciousness of his speach impediment. He also expressed to me that these experiences gave him some insight into his inner mind, the dream worlds he sketched and reflected in his art work.

Stephen at the Cedar Key Art Festival, April 1972, with his work exhibited. Stephen and I drove out to Cedar Key on a whim from Gainesville, Florida, to see and participate in the art festival. We draped a sheet over my VW van and hung Stephen's paintings and sketches. It was a great experience and we spent the night camping upon the beach, watching the stars and enjoying the gentle seabreeze. No, we didn't sell any of Stephen's work, but it was an eye opening experience to see all the wonderful exhibits by professional artists and craftsmen.

Back in Gainesville Stephen spent much of his time socializing. Smoking grass and experimenting with consciousness altering chemical substances was "the hip thing to do" if you wanted to meet wild women, party and with any luck spend the evening in the warm embrace of a wonderful lady. There were many a timse when Stephen would get stoned out of his fricken mind and go running off with some girl he had just met for a one night stand -- or perhaps longer. He was, you see, looking for his soulmate and he might have found her had his foolishness of taking practically anything anyone would give him to put in his mouth and spark visions of dancing elves and faires, not led to delusions which killed him first.

Of course it would not be accurate to say Stephen was a drug addict or inspired only by getting stoned. Though he did smoke marijuanas frequently and certainly drank his fill of alcoholic beverages, I know of only twice that he used stronger hallucinogens like magic mushrooms which contain psilocybin. Stephen had friends who would go out and collect magic mushroom in cowpastures, bring them home, cook them up in a soup, and have parties where everyone would get high, listen to music, watch the walls breathe and see God However, most of Stephens inspiration came from typical life experiences and he was most inspired by books and movies. He devoured art books and studied the works of all the great masters. He also read much fantasy and historical fiction. Some of the books I remember that he loved were the Hornblower series, the Conan books, the Tarzan books and of course the J. R. R. Tolkein Lord or the Rings trillogy. Among his favorite actors were Kirt Douglas in the roll of a viking and Clint Eastwood in the roll of tough cowboy.

Stephen sketched what he read and saw on the silver screen. He also dreamed and imagined to creat his own fantasy worlds. Elves, dwarfs, hobbits, orks, gobblins and other creatures and characters of his own invention filled his sketch books and came to life in his paintings. Always Stephen tended to bring his visions out of the dark, out of the floating mist of canvas or wood upon which he painted. He told me this was a technique he learned from the old masters , a way of bringing focus upon one's subject and making the images seem to glow. It was a technique he liked because it gave a dream quality to much of his work.

Like in the Escape with Cheese oil on canvas, Stephen seemed to be painting a mouse running away with an arm full of cheese. But I remember asking Stephen about this painting and talking about it. To Stephen this was an illustration of Gollum coveting the magic ring inspired by the Hobbit and Lord of the Ring trillogy. I believe Stephen was trying to say things are not always what they seem. You see just a mouse. I see the under would, the low life, grabbing power and glory. It may, in fact, be how Stephen saw himself, an artist struggling to achieve some bit of fame and gain some piece of cheese in his life time.

Escape with Cheese Oil on canvas

Yet Stephen seemed to know, or sense, that his work would not be recognized during his life time. On the Halloween eve before Stephen's death, we went to the library. While browsing the stacks Stephen commented about how an artist's work is never most greatly valued until after the artist is dead. Then he pondered about his own fate and wondered if his work would ever grace the stacks of a library shelf long after he had lived? Then Stephen checked out some large art books which I helped him carry home. We spent the evening together and I remember Stephen showing me things in these books, things which seemed insignificante at the time... but over the years I've come to cherish Stephen's last art lesson.

Stephen seemed in a strange mood that last night. He was talking more than usual, not stuttering so much, another sign he may have been tripping. Then in the wee hours of the morning I went to bed. I do not know if Stephen ever went to sleep that last night. The last I remember of Stephen is hearing him taking an early morning shower. He left the house before I woke up and went down the hill to Jacksonville State University. He had told me the night before that he was planning to meet Beth Hertz, a girl he felt very attracted to. I found out later Stephen never had that randevue... instead he ended up dead along the side of a country road some 50 miles from home.

All that is left of Stephen is his art and writing and the love he shared with family and friends. In Florida I established a memorial foundation after Stephen's death. In his memory I organized and sponsored two art festivals in Gainesville, Florida, one at Oaks Mall and another in the plaza down by the court house. I also published a small tabloid and tried to organize some art competitions to inspire other young artists. These efforts met with some success and I wish to thank everyone involved.

With the advent of the personal computer and the popularzation of the internet, it is now possible to easily and economically present some of Stephen's work to the world. I believe this is an appropirate media because Stephen's art always was a reflection of an inner mental process of visions that somehow exist best if left inside the mind... and cyberspace is like a link between minds, one which filters out the middle man, the art agent or publishing house. Thus I share freely with the world Stephen's art that all may come to know him and share some of his visions; that a few might even come to know his love which still lives inside me and reaches out beyond Stephen's death to touch others.

Terry Lynch
24-25 November, 1997

Further Study

Over time I hope to post more of Stephen's art and writings. These are his gift to the world. I may also use this as a forum to help educate people about art, art therapy and the hurt and harm which may come through drug abuse. Anyone wanting to contribute to this effort is welcome to help.

I Love Stephen

Buy adorable "I Love Stephen" gifts and apparel for that special Stephen in your life.

I Love Stephen

Related Links

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