JUST A SMALL ADDITION
Elmer Kelen turned to leave the studio of a young Hungarian artist, Arpad Sebesy. He was angry and his parting words were, “That’s a rotten portrait and I refuse to pay for it.” The artist was crushed. He had wasted weeks on this painting and now the 500 pengos that he was going to lose on the deal flashed through his mind. Bitterly he recalled that the millionaire had only posed three times, so that the painting had to be done virtually from memory. Still, he didn’t think it was a bad likeness. Before the millionaire left his studio the artist called out, “One minute. Will you give me a letter saying you refused the portrait because it didn’t resemble you?” Glad to get off the hook so easily, Kelen agreed and wrote the letter. A few months later the Society of Hungarian Artists opened its exhibition at the Gallery of Fine Arts in Budapest. Soon afterwards Kelen’s phone began…
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