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The Vince Bova Gallery

(Paintings, drawings, and figurines created by our very own SDABu Assignment Coordinator)

We're all aware of that age old question:  How well do you really know somebody?  Most of the time the answer is, I really don't want to know.  Some people's closets are better left closed and even sealed.  Still, taking just a peek in some may cause a pleasant surprise.  I had that particular experience about six months ago.  Vince was over at the house on a day I had received some "collectible" baseball cards.  We got to talking about them and collectibles in general.  At one point as we looked at an enclosed catalog of sports figurines, Vince rather nonchalantly mentioned that he used to sell such figurines.  Oh?  So, you used to collect these things, then you sold your collection?  No.  I used to actually make the figurines, which were then sold.  What!?  Well, then, we really got to talking.  Or rather, I got to really asking a lot of questions.  Seems that Vince was "in the business" years ago as one of the premier artists for Gartlan USA, Inc., a company that commemorated old-time sports heroes by commissioning limited-edition, hand-carved and painted likenesses of some of the most famous.  Wow.  But that wasn't all.  Come to find out that Vince, as an artist and along with an artist friend, Chris Paluso, had been hired to paint most of the emblems seen along the outfield wall in Jack Murphy stadium during the 70's.  Wow again.  But even that wasn't all.  He had been commissioned to do a painting of Willie McCovey back when he was a Padre, a painting that was presented to McCovey during a field ceremony before a game at Jack Murphy Stadium.  But the best was yet to come.  He met Dave Winfield when he was in his "sophomore" year as a Padre.  And Winfield was in awe of Vince's work, in particular the painting entitled "RELAXIN'" seen below.  So much so that he insisted on purchasing it from Vince, even though Vince would have been more than willing to just give it to him.  To make a long story short, Vince and I went to brunch one day and he opened his "closet" to Jan and I---and the below is what fell out.  Some pretty impressive stuff, to say the least.  Not to mention that what you see below represents hardly more than 1% of the total amount of work that Vince has created over the years.  I was so impressed that I immediately asked Vince if he would allow me to put some of his stuff on our umpire's website.  Now it was his turn to become somewhat shocked.  He seemed to think about it for a moment, then shrugged and rather modestly said, fine.  It might be kinda fun.  Fun?  Yeah, I guess.  (Artists, they're so freakin' weird).  Man, you think you know somebody, eh?

Anyway, most of what you see below is long gone, having been commissioned and sold or just flat-out given away.  Just about everything you see are photos that I scanned.  So, if the quality seems to be lacking a bit, it is my fault and has nothing to do with the quality of the original work.  I don't think, however, that this will affect your appreciation of this work.  So, ENJOY!    (John Marabeas)

(I've provided a bio of Vince with respect to his artistic talents.  The Dave Winfield stuff may be of special interest)

Bova Biography

(Vince can be reached at the following email address:bluebrother35sd@cox.net)

(Click on each thumbnail for a enlarged view of the particular piece, then click on your Browser's "Back" arrow to return here)

HALFTIME

Council Rudolph, #44, a defensive back, played from 1972 to 1977 with Houston, St. Louis, and Tampa Bay. Vince saw a photo of him in the paper one day standing as he is now. Vince was captured by the look of determination, which inspired this painting---one of his favorites.

FINISHED?

Some say yes. Others say no. As far as the painting goes, the answer is no. It is a work in progress. Still, I insisted Vince let me photograph it as is and post it. Vince does plan on finishing this painting between seasons. Hopefully, before Favre himself is really finished.

3-POINT STANCE

Unknown Dallas Player, # 66. (Painted when everybody wanted Dallas to win).

RUTH and GEHRIG

A collage of Ruth and Gehrig. No serious sports artist could refrain from painting these two. Vince is no excpetion.

"LITTLE LOOEY"

A collage of Luis Aparicio, the phenom shortstop for the White Sox during the 50's and 60's. Won 9 Gold Gloves in three different decades. (Vince identifies with those short guys).

STAN "THE MAN"

Stan Musial played for the St. Louis Cardinals for 22 years, from 1942 to 1963. By the time he retired, Musial held 17 major league records, 29 National League and 9 All-Star game records. He was Most Valuable Player in 1943, 1946, and 1948. Although he only played 22 years, he was named on 24 All-Star teams. Definitely "The Man." (This moniker is obviously what inspired Vince to do this drawing).

THE SWING

Every sports nut is aware of Ted's accomplishments and the fact that he attened Hoover High School in San Diego. (Did you know that Ted batted .583 his junior year in high school? In his senior year, he batted (only) .406, but made up for it with his pitching. He had a 16-3 record and even struck out 23 batters in a single game. Wow). Vince met Ted a few years ago and had him sign this drawing. What kind of guy was Ted? Well, he would happily sign a baseball for you then, while the ink was still wet, bounce it off the floor back to you and laugh. Pretty fun-loving guy, I'd say.

THE LOOK

Grover Cleveland Alexander, from the prehistoric era of baseball. Vince came across this old photo somewhere and was inspired by the "In Your Face" glare. (It reminded him of Ed Olsen, the Grossmont College baseball coach, when he just couldn't believe what he was seeing). Vince couldn't figure out if this look was the result of an umpire's call, or if Grover was playing 3rd and staring down Ty Cobb at 2nd, telling him to "Bring it on!" (Interesting note: Ronald Reagan once played him in a movie. No, it wasn't "Bedtime for Bonzo." Close though).

THE BABE

Yes, this is a painting, not a photograph. Unfortunately, the original photo of this painting was not the best quality. That's really too bad.

BAT BOY

A White Sox bat boy, again from the prehistoric baseball era. Vince just feels there's too much character in those old uniforms to ignore. (Or maybe his own uniform has gotten too tight).

YOU GOT TO BE KIDDING

A young kid not only actually reading, but reading a newspaper on top of it. Amazing! Again, just too much character back then to ignore.

RELAXIN'

Another of Vince's favorite paintings. Ended up being a favorite of Dave Winfield as well. Vince had been commissioned to do a painting of Winfield back in the 70's. During the course of having gotten together, Winfield saw this painting and offered to buy it. Vince's response? "No problem."

COZY

This house/antique store, located in San Diego on 4th just off the 163 South Freeway, always caught Vince's eye whenever he passed by. It finally got to him and he just had to paint it. (You gotta do what you gotta do).

WINTER STEAM

You can almost hear the quiet power piercing through your ears. At first glance there is a feeling of nostalgic serenity. But if you continue to stare at the train's dark and faceless engine, you can almost see an evil grin lurking just beneath the surface. Do you really want to be riding train number 669?

THE ALLURING BEAUTY OF POWER (1)

Vince, as an artist, has always been fascinated by the old-style carousel horses. They are so rich in detail, imagination, and the "spectacular," with no "rules" to limit the tapestry with which each may be dressed. An artist's dream. Small wonder that the un-fettered minds of children find the merry-go-round so fascinating.

THE ALLURING BEAUTY OF POWER (2)

THE ALLURING BEAUTY OF POWER (3)

THE ALLURING BEAUTY OF POWER (4)

THE ALLURING BEAUTY OF POWER (5)

NOT GOOD ENOUGH---PART 1

This painting, along with the next three cars, were created by Vince when he was just a teenager. And get this. At first, Vince didn't want to include these paintings in this gallery. He said he didn't think they were good enough. (Oh, really? Well, remind him to never show him any of my paintings).

NOT GOOD ENOUGH---PART 2

NOT GOOD ENOUGH---PART 3

NOT GOOD ENOUGH---PART 4

FIGURINES

This is a page from a catalog by Prospect Creations, advertising some of the figurines available at the time. Vince made each of the figurines you see. (The paintings of Bob Gibson and Gordy Howe in the upper left corner were created by someone else). The following thumbnails will show the various stages performed by Vince when creating these figurines (with the exception of Harmon Killebrew). NOTE: All prices shown here (and on any following photos) were what the figurines sold for way back when. Don't know if they are even available anymore.

HORIZONTAL GRACE (The Wizard at Work)

This absolutely spectacular photo of Ozzie Smith was provided to Vince as the model for his creation of the "Wizard Oz" seen to the left. You'll notice that the photo shows Ozzie gloving the ball backhand, while the figurine shows a forehand catch. This was by request of the company who commissioned the figurine from Vince. ("Artistic License" so to speak).

PRELIMINARY OZZIE

These two photos show Ozzie before the color detail was added. With respect to the bottom photo, Vince wants to assure everyone that Ozzie was not hurt during the creation process. Still, it sure looks like it smarts some!

PRELIMINARY HULL

These two photos show Bobby Hull before his paint job.

PRELIMINARY JENKINS

These photos show Fergusen Jenkins before being painted, as well as the photo used as the model.

WATCHING IT FLY

These photos show Eddie Mathews, before and after.

HARMIN' HARMON

HOBBIT BASEBALL

YEAH, I GOT YOUR #1 RIGHT HERE!

"POPEYE"

Steve Garvey, including the letter officially accepting Vince as his "creator."

AIN'T GOIN' PAST ME, NO WAY

Rod Carew. (He was so good, he didn't need a bat)! Interesting story about this figurine. Vince said that Rod told him he wanted his bat angle exactly horizontal with the ground. Well, Vince had seen Carew play plenty of times and knew that Rod never held his bat exactly level with the ground. So, Vince gave Rod's hand a slight "tilt"---that is, the way he actually batted.

NEGRO LEAGUE HEROES

This photo and the three that follow are of the Gartlan USA, Inc. brochure that commemorates three of the most prominent African-Americans who played in the Negro League. From left to right is Ray Dandridge of the Eagles, "Cool Papa" Bell and Buck Leonard of the Grays. Vince considered it an honor to be the artist commissioned by Garlan to create the very first Negro League figurines every produced. But the real honor came in knowing that Dandridge, Bell and Leonard were considered as arguably the three best ballplayers of anyone who had ever played the game. A fourth Negro League phenom---Monte Irvin, who went on to play for the Giants in 1949---is shown in more detail following these brochure pages.

A WALK IN THE PARK

"Cool Papa" Bell is considered to be one of the fastest players to have ever run the bases. Ever. Be sure to read his bio here.

THE GATEKEEPER (Anchoring the Corner)

It is said that "Ray Dandridge was flat-out the best third baseman who ever played in the Negro Leagues." A rather profound accomplishment, considering that the Negro Leagues consisted of some of the best ballplayers to have ever played the game---not to mention the fact that many of the fields these guys played on were (quite literally) no better than a "cow pasture."

THE BLACK LOU GEHRIG

Buck Leonard, after 17 years in the Negro Leagues, ended with a .341 batting average. Not bad, especially when you consider that this average is 40 points less than the average (.382) he posted during all the exhibition games in which he participated against the Major League competition. (Makes you wonder which league really had the toughest pitchers).

RBI

"Cool Papa" Bell sliding, Buck Leonard swinging. (No, Buck did not grow taller as he grew older. Vince made two sizes of figurines).

SECOND BEST IS STILL BETTER THAN THE REST

Rumor has it that Mone Irvin should have been the first black player to have played in the Major Leagues. But for whatever reason---age, politics, timing---that honor went to Jackie Robinson. Irvin did get his chance of course and was picked up by the Giants in 1949, two years after Robinson broke through. Irvin's most profound accomplishments in the Major Leagues took place in 1951. He had a 121 RBI season and batted .458 in the '51 World Series. He is probably best remembered, however, for having stolen home during this series.

SMALL IS STILL VERY TALL

Monte Irvin showing his short side.

SMALL ISN'T ALWAYS VERY TALL

Monte Irvin showing off another short side.

ALL BY MYSELF

Top, Mr. Gartlan of Gartlan USA, Inc. with Monte Irvin. Bottom, Vince posing with three of the four Negro League figurines he created. (No, that look on his face doesn't reflect what or even if he will be paid. He is wondering, having been shoved into a corner table by himself, whether or not Mr. Gartlan is going to order a steak for him, too).

FAME

Vince, signing baseballs for all the artist-groupies, which he followed up with a question to each one: "Did you get a steak to eat . . . Did you get a steak to eat . . . Did you get a steak to eat . . .?"

SOMETIMES LIKES DO ATTRACT

Vince, stroking Yogi Berra to life. (Vince said that creating Yogi was 90% mental attitude. The other half was actually carving).

THE EAGLE HAS LANDED

Vince, getting Jack Murphy stadium ready for the All-Star game back in the '70s. (The real question is this: Do you think Vince could fit between the rungs of a ladder today)?

MASTER OF HIS DOMAIN

The entire outfield belongs to the mastery of Vince Bova, again, back in the 70's, preparing for the All-Star game.

BEFORE THE BOBBLE-HEAD

Back in the 70's, Willie McCovey was honored with something a bit more profound than a plastic likeness of his enlarged head bouncing around on a spring---a painting of him created by Vince Bova. MCcovey is being presented with this painting before a home game. (That's Vince sitting on the ground in brown shirt, white pants---and hair!).

SEE THIS?

Vince must have had a premonition when he created Al Barlick, the umpire.

HAIR TODAY, GONE TOMORROW

Talk about your prehistoric days.

CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR

Vince gets plugged with three other guys.

SEE WHAT I MEAN

Vince gets plugged by himself.