Artist attended nearly 2,000 trials over 13 years, painting the 'true essence' of what he sees
Justice was in short supply when David Louis Wall was growing up.
Abused by a man posing as his mentor, he says, he was kicked out of his home at age 11 after he blew the whistle. Four years later, his mother was shot to death by her boyfriend. The boyfriend died before the case went to trial.
Now an adult, Wall has spent the last 13 years painting what happens in Toronto courtrooms, donating his completed watercolor works to the Archives of Ontario, reports the Toronto Star. Cameras are not allowed in the courtrooms.
In addition to portraying multiple aspects of the 2,000 or so trials he has attended, the paintings often include names, dates, charges or other words describing the case. If Wall feels a witness is lying, he doesn’t hesitate to write, in all-caps lettering, “GOD IS IN THE ROOM.” On rare occasions when he has not been allowed to paint in the courtroom, he paints the courtroom doors.
Wall is not paid for these courtroom paintings. He lives frugally and covers his expenses by painting oil and acrylic portraits and landscapes for pay. Meanwhile, he pursues his self-imposed mission when the courts are open, following a list of rules he created.
“We are here as minds, not observers,” he reads to a reporter from the list. “Draw what you see: only the true essence of it. Always move around the room, no one is the focus, and make sure you are never the focus … Draw what you observe and your art will tell the story.”
