5. Emergence

Departing the Womb

He allowed himself to be swayed by his conviction that human beings are not born once and for all on the day their mothers give birth to them, but that life obliges them over and over again to give birth to themselves. ― Gabriel García Márquez, Love in the Time of Cholera

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David also had a loft in New York City to which he was eager to return. He was convinced that New York was where the best opportunities lay. So, in November 1966, they both moved to the city. Every summer, however, Kathy would return to the Cape. She would get a waitress job and model occasionally to support them. My father, however, continued to spend his days luxuriously waiting for inspiration and then making art.

On one of her nights waitressing in a bar, when she was in her early 20s, a flamboyantly dressed man came in and sat down. When she went to take his order, he struck up a conversation, introducing himself as Prince Romanasky. During the conversation, Romanasky discovered Kathy was an artist and asked her if she would like to meet Salvador Dali. Kathy’s eyes dazzled at the mention of Dali’s name. “Of course!” she said, relishing the opportunity to meet an artist of his stature. They made arrangements to meet at the Plaza Hotel later that week.