by Les Anderson
"To be fully human all our senses must work in perfect harmony - as a sensory palette - then life is a symphony."
These quotes by the great Hollywood portraitist characterized his outlook and lust for life. The picture you see of him here is as he was when I knew him. This picture is out of 'Palm Springs Life' magazine from July of 1981.
In the early 1980's, I was a private student of Alexander Rosenfeld. He insisted I call him Alex, and he called me his friend. I was a mere child when I traded him pool service for private lessons.
Whenever I arrived at his house to clean his pool, Alex would come bounding down the rear steps of his simple La Quinta, California home to greet me. Without fail, and with a twinkle in his 80-year-old eyes, he would ask, "Are we painting today?" You see, he wanted to pass on his gift. He tutored students at Everybody's Village in the desert, but I was among the privileged few to study and be taught on a personal level, one-on-one, in the private studio of one of the greats.
Early in our relationship, Alex told me not to worry about color. "Color will come later, but learn to draw first. If you can draw, truly draw, you will paint," he said. Although in my young mind I thought I already knew how to draw, Alex taught me to "truly draw".
He taught that nothing really has a completely sharp edge. Even the sharpest knife does not have a finite framed edge. Everything curves to a certain degree. If you magnify the sharpest of sharp razors, the edge will be curved, not sharp, as it appears.
Consequently, we must draw this way, as if there is not a sharp finite edge. Alex described the shaping of the curve as "piano keys." These keys are to be laid and shaped around the object with the artist's pencil. "Smaller, smaller, smaller," he taught. "Tighter, tighter, tighter. Lighter, and lighter...and lighter." Just like that!
In the summer of 1981, Alex excitedly enlightened to me as to the particulars of the Century plant growing in his back yard. He said it had been there for "many years." As we stood there gazing up at the plant, he explained that it only bloomed once and it was now ready to bloom. "When the bloom is complete, it will die," he said. Alex thought of this as one of the many "wonders of God." 
Although he worked with celebrities and the rich and famous, Alexander Rosenfeld remained an authentic, unassuming artist with an enthusiasm for life and people, and with a deep and genuine love of the arts.
I am proud to say I studied with Alexander Rosenfeld, at his easel, in his home. What he passed on to me was priceless. I am humbled that he insisted I call him Alex. I am honored that Alex called me his friend.
