Orange Flight

HM Saffer, Autumn Silence, oil on canvas

Whether it’s sunset or autumn, there is something about the colour orange that lifts the soul. For me it’s the deep, burnt-orange variety that is almost physically luscious, like surrendering to the smooth embrace of a spoonful of orange soufflé.

HM Saffer has taken this colour to perfection, capturing it in its natural habitat - for him, the stunning countryside of upstate New York.

HM Saffer, Orange Clouds, oil on canvas, private collection

Born in 1942, Pennsylvania, HM Saffer II was destined for a life less ordinary. After graduating college he set off for Paris to study economics, an adventure that led him instead to become a musician with the likes of Hugues Aufray, Jacques Brel, and Charles Aznavour, and eventually to become a music producer with Barclay Records. During his time in France, with inexhaustible energy, HM also opened two restaurants in Paris (where he was also a chef) and one in Ibiza, completed studies at L'Ecole Des Beaux Arts, and mounted exhibitions of his art in Paris and Brussels to favourable reviews.

Upon returning to the States, HM co-wrote hits for Warner Brothers before founding HMS Two Music Ltd., writing and producing music for films, Broadway productions, and commercials for classics such as Pepsi and Michelob.

HM Saffer, Autumn Pinnacle, oil on canvas, author’s private collection

Throughout this time HM continued to expand his art practice, becoming interested in Sumi-e, Japanese brush-on-paper painting. This interest would eventually draw this extraordinary man on a new adventure to Japan in the 1980’s, where over the next decade he would study with Japanese masters, meet and marry his now wife of many years, Hisayo, and develop a unique style of painting that melds Sumi-e techniques with Western oil painting.

HM Saffer, Moonlit Trees, oil on canvas, private collection

The composition and style of HM’s current works reflects not only his distinct visual language but also his unique character and perception of nature, transporting the viewer into the scene as if we were one with the trees, the lakes, and the clouds.

HM Saffer, Glowing Trees, oil on canvas

After returning to the States, HM Saffer and Hisayo settled in upstate New York which is where my then-not-yet husband and I met them almost 20 years ago. Or more precisely, we met HM’s work, Autumn Pinnacle, which captured our hearts and imaginations at first glance through the window of a local gallery. Having enquired about the artist, we soon found ourselves generously received in the happy jumble of their living room, and the rest is history.

HM Saffer continues to be widely exhibited in the United States and internationally. Orange is of course not his only colour, but I love it so thought I’d single it out. You can see HM’s biography and many more of his works on canvas and on paper at https://www.hmsaffer.com

COOL FACT

While at Warner Brothers, HM co-wrote the hit song, "Look What They Done To My Song, Ma", recorded by Ray Charles amongst others.

[IMAGE: HM Saffer, Autumn Vibrance III, oil on canvas, private collection]