DANVILLE, Va. (WSET) — An award-winning artist and Air Force veteran from Danville has created a touching tribute to honor the late Mark Spain, a beloved ABC 13 News Anchor who passed away from pancreatic cancer at the end of last year.
Sherman Watkins said it isn’t his job just to paint but to paint history. And when you talk about legends at WSET, one name you have to mention is Mark Spain.
“So many people loved him from that station. Even to the Richmond General Assembly, all that. So I said, ‘Wow this guy is noteworthy,'” Watkins said.
Watkins painted a portrait of Mark to honor his memory. It took Watkins a month to finish it. He wanted to capture Mark’s essence in the best way possible. Often, artists rely solely on a photo as a guide for a painting like this. But with Mark being a fixture on our TV screens for a decade, Watkins knew exactly how to paint him.
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“By watching him on the news and studying him and seeing his ways. I wanted to look and see some of the expression and feeling that was really in him. I can see love and flavor inside of this man and I tried to portray that,” Watkins said.
From Mark’s award-winning and bright smile to his clean-cut hair and his “Spaintacular” wardrobe and style. But one thing Watkins really wanted to capture was Mark’s eyes. He said that your eyes are what tell your story.
“You can see the beauty and the strength in his eyes, the love in his eyes, and the feeling and the music. I just wanted it to balance and have emphasis,” Watkins said.
Watkins hopes that that the portrait will remind those who knew and loved Mark of his amazing personality, strong commitment and love for his job, that distinctive and powerful voice, and how Mark did indeed leave his mark.
“It’s extraordinary the things that he did, and his memory should last and not be forgotten,” Watkins said.