IN JEFFREY HAYES’ CHILDHOOD HOME hangs a grand reproduction of Autumn on the Hudson River by Jasper Cropsey: a depiction that subtly nudged the young artist towards fascination. Jeffrey recalls, “I spent countless hours standing on the couch looking into the world of that beautiful painting. I still love seeing it.”
Later, at the age of six, a museum outing with his father would shape his artistic perspective. A particular painting – with its intricately glazed lace over a figure’s forearm – imprinted itself in his young mind. The astonishment lingered; the disbelief that paint could achieve such intricate finesse. “Both of these experiences instilled in me an intense curiosity about how simple paint could be transformed into such wonders.”
