Kenn Kendall on James Dean (My Book&App "In Love With James Dean")

Here's Kenneth Kendall ... the artist known for his many paintings and sculptures of James Dean ... talks about James Dean .... these clips are from two different documentaries. It was the extraordinary sculpture of Marlon Brando produced by Kendall, that caught the attention of James Dean. One evening in January of 1955, James Dean dropped by Kendall’s Melrose studio with his friend Toni Lee Scott to view it first hand when it was displayed in the window. The rest is history.
James Dean spent several hours talking with Kenneth about art, acting, opera and culture. At the end of the night, James Dean asked if the artist would be interested in sculpting him. Kendall replied that he had some work to complete, but he would consider it. After seeing East of Eden, the artist was excited about the request. He sent word to James Dean to acquire a life mask from Warner Brothers’ makeup department so that he could have a model for the sculpting process. Sadly, James Dean died in a car crash before he could fulfill the request. The mask was discovered in James Dean apartment and loaned to Kendall after James Dean was buried. Kendall’s work on a monumental sculpture of James Dean started soon after. He also painted numerous canvases of James Dean over the years.