At age 75, Ken Pridgen picked up his paintbrush to serve in a new way, by preserving the legacies of Texas’ fallen military heroes.
What began in 2010 with a single portrait of U.S. Marine Wesley Riggs has become a deeply personal mission. Since then, 90-year-old Pridgen has painted over 300 portraits of service members who gave their lives for their country.
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He sat down with Photojournalist Adrian Crooks to tell him about what the paintings mean to him, as well as what it means to be a servant.
Each 3-by-4-foot painting, displayed at the Portrait of a Warrior Memorial Art Gallery, is more than a tribute; it’s a storytelling canvas.
“They don’t have to go to the graveyard,” Pridgen said. “They can always observe their son or their daughter, and that’s the closest thing they will ever have to having their loved one back with them.”
Pridgen was initially unsure he was up to the task. But he says he felt guided by a higher power. “I’ve been blessed to be a servant,” he said. “You only knew how much joy it is to serve rather than be served.”
He also brings a veteran’s perspective to his work.
“I was in the Air Force for 10 years, and I was no hero,” Pridgen said. “I’ve been called a hero here, but I don’t know what a hero is really. These kids here are my heroes. And somehow or other, I have become a hero to many hundreds of people because of a talent that God let me enjoy, I paint our fallen heroes.”
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Through brushstrokes and memory, Pridgen’s gallery serves as both a sacred space and a powerful reminder of the cost of freedom.
