Local artist to share portraits of Vietnam soldiers

As a child, Al Smith spent a lot of time with a pencil in his hand.

“I would draw everything,” the Owatonna resident said.

And then he stopped, for 60 years. It wasn’t until a friend asked Smith–more than once–to do a portrait of him in the same attitude of prayer as seen in the familiar 1920s photograph “Grace,” by Eric Enstrom. The man pictured, peddler Charles Wilden, is praying over a loaf of bread.

When Smith finally agreed, he said he would draw his friend on his own terms. The resulting portrait shows his friend praying and recognizes the man’s military service in Vietnam.

“After I did that, I couldn’t stop drawing,” Smith said.

Over the past two-to-three years, he has completed scores of poster-sized pictures. Some will be on display June 26, 7 p.m., at the Owatonna VFW Hall, 135 Oakdale St. “The Vietnam Experience” is presented by Owatonna AMVETS Post 23.

Smith will talk about his work and process as an artist during the presentation, which will include time for questions. The time he spends on each portrait varies, and he sets up each one  in his family room for a while to find any opportunities for improvement.

A chance meeting at the Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast in Owatonna got him into the work of drawing soldiers. Speaker Karen Vaughn talked about the loss of her Navy SEAL son, who had been killed in action.

The two had something in common: “I had a son who died some years ago,” Smith said.

“I told her I was thinking about doing a program on the SEALS and asked if I could do her son’s portrait for a keynote presentation.”

Smith later sketched Vaughn and her daughter from a photo he saw online and sent both portraits to her. Coincidentally, he sketched another SEAL portrait for an online friend whose son was killed in action. The two sons, from different states, had been friends.

Vaughn opened the door to many military connections for Smith. And when KSTP-TV of the Twin Cities broadcast his story, he heard from people all over the country.

In addition to the Vietnam group, his collections include a group of war heroes and, at the insistence of his wife, Pat, “Women of War.”

He’s working now on iconic scenes from World War II and has several hours invested in a work based on the photo, “Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima.”

“I was born in the shadow of World War II,” Smith said. “Growing up, everything was all about the war… the news, the magazines, the rationing. I’ve always been interested in war. I read something on World War II every day.”

Because he spends hours looking at photos of his subjects, “drawing these boys is sometimes a real spiritual thing to me… I do it to acknowledge these young men and women. It’s one way I honor them for what they’ve done.”

“I almost end up talking to them,” Smith said. “What’s your life like? Did you make it out okay? Sometimes, I pray for them.”

Creating his detailed and moving portraits, he added, “is a mixed blessing.”

“I hate war, but I love the fact that we have a military that goes for us.”

AMVETS member Arlen Burmeister came up with the idea to share Smith’s work. The two have been friends for years. He said AMVETS is an organization committed to the community and giving back.

The group raises funds through a summer hot dog stand at CashWise grocery store, selling meat trays at the Elks Club, and hosting a pancake breakfast, with funds distributed to local nonprofits.

Free-will donations collected during “The Vietnam Experience” will go toward completion of the Owatonna Veterans Memorial.