Tribute to Gpa E

My sweet Grandpa E passed away this past Sunday. I wasn't sure if I wanted to post anything about it considering the informality of this blog, but he was such an amazing grandpa I thought you all should know how blessed I was to know him. He was such a smart, talented, kind and extremely patient man. He always had a great story to tell, and as of late was actually free to tell them in their entirety.... my Grandma passed in 2003 and wasn't all that patient when it came to him telling stories. And now that they are back together I'm sure she is the one who is talking nonstop.

My favorite stories were about the war or about his time in the Sigma Nu fraternity house at the U. I rushed a sorority and every time I came over to visit he would ask me how the Sigma Nu's were doing. Let's just say, I never stepped foot in that house - I guess it had changed quite a bit since he had been there, but he was still interested to know what was going on.

Grandpa most of all was an artist. His father was a doctor and he enrolled in school thinking he would be one too. He was always so impressed that Eric could make it through all the pre-reqs and dental school because he claimed he couldn't pass chemistry to save his life. So, he took up art. Good thing he did. He accomplished a great deal and inspired a great deal of artists along the way. Love you gramps.

Here is an article from the Deseret News:

E. Keith Eddington, one of Salt Lake's most capable graphic designers, as well as one of its finest portrait painters, died Sunday in his home. He was 84. A student of Arnold Friberg and Alvin Gittins, Mr. Eddington graduated with an MFA from the University of Utah in 1950. Two years later he joined the U.'s art-department faculty, eventually becoming the lead commercial-art instructor. "When Arnold wanted a portrait of his wife painted," said Mr. Eddington's son-in-law, Mel Young, "he came to Keith and said, 'Will you do this? You're better than I am.' That's the kind of respect people had for him in the art community." During his two-decade tenure at the U., he also found time to pursue a highly successful career as a local designer. In addition, he was a partner in Circuit and Eddington, and eventually head of Keith Eddington and Associates, one of the area's most respected graphic-design firms.
In the 1980s, Mr. Eddington became a member of Brigham Young University's design faculty, helping the institution to get the new department up and running. As a young man, he fought in World War II. Assigned to military intelligence, Mr. Eddington drew maps and designed other publications that assisted military personnel in their assignments in Europe and the Pacific. A few of his noted portraits include "Father Escalante" (Utah State Historical Society), Gov. Norman Bangerter (Utah State Capitol), and his 6-by-9-foot painting of the risen Lord in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. "President Hinckley asked him to do it," said Young. "It's at the entrance to the Legacy Theater."

Grandpa E - December 2006 Self Portrait