By David Vitrano

L’Observateur

RESERVE – Although it was never his official job title, today few would argue about designating Freeman Rose an artist.

Rose, a resident of the Southeast Louisiana War Veterans Home in Reserve, has amassed quite a collection of paintings in the months since his arrival.

Rose’s interest in painting began at a young age.

“I started when I was about 8 years old,” he said. “I never went to school for it. I just picked it up.”

What began as a simple hobby turned into a passion for the Army veteran.

“The older I got, the more interested I got in it,” he said.

Rose explained he eventually started reading books on the matter, quickly learning the techniques and methods used by the professionals. While the books may have refined his knowledge of the subject, his diligent practice of it refined his skill.

Never getting paid for his art, the Cottonport native spent 40 years working as a butcher at local grocery chain A&P.

“My painting, I did that when I got home in the evenings,” he said.

What started as an evening diversion, however, has come to define Rose’s stay at the veterans home.

“Over here, there’s nothing too much more to do,” he said. “I just get into it. I enjoy doing it. It keeps me busy.”

And busy he must be to have produced the volume of work he has. When the visually talented art students at East St. John High School teamed up with the home to produce a community art show, Rose’s work filled much of the exhibition space.

His vivid paintings often depict scenes, both real and imagined, of tranquil street corners or swamps brimming with the wildlife of South Louisiana.

His efforts recently caught the eye of Rodney Lewis, a Louisiana artisan whose main work consists of decorated miniature pirogues. Lewis is planning an exhibition called the Maze of Murals and enlisting the help of other like-minded Louisianans to fill the Louisiana-shaped space with a wide range of artwork.

During a recent visit to the veterans home, Lewis convinced Rose to create the first mural for his project.

“I said, ‘I’ll give it a try,’” he said. “That’s all I can do.”

Coming up with his subject matter was the easy part for Rose. The massive painting depicts a paddleboat on one half of the canvas and egrets among cypress trees on the other.

“(Lewis) said anything I’d like to do, I could do it,” Rose said.

The hard part, Rose explained, was translating his usually smaller paintings to a large canvas.

“That wasn’t easy. I had to do a lot of thinking and figuring,” he said.

Nonetheless, after about two weeks of work, Rose produced the piece that will be included in the exhibit, which Lewis hopes to have ready for a Lake Charles showing sometime in spring 2011.

After seeing the way art has enriched his own life, Rose has now set about instilling the same sense of fulfillment in some of his fellow veterans.

He said he tries to recruit some of the other residents there to take up painting. So far, he has taken two students under his wing. He said they started simple and have gradually worked their way up to more difficult concepts.

One of the main things he tries to instill in the others is to stay within one’s own zone of interest. It’s a simple philosophy that could benefit many.

Said Rose, “I say anything that excites you, if you like it, paint it.”