Rank Amateur

MODERN AMATEUR
The Magazine for People Who Show Up

Cover Profile: Hal Pemberton, Rank Amateur

For nearly four decades, Hal Pemberton has been failing to learn watercolor. We met him at his studio in Northern California, where he works out of a converted shed and wears, at all times, a Class B hazmat suit and full industrial ear protection. His dog, a wire-haired terrier named Beatrice, lives on his lap.

“It’s not the painting that’s dangerous,” he told us, gesturing at the brushes and the small piece of explosive ordnance casually placed beside a coffee mug. “It’s the disappointment. I dress for it.”

Pemberton, 58, holds the rank of Rank Amateur Third Class, awarded by the American Society of Recreational Failure in 2019. It is one rank above Beginner With Aspirations and two ranks below Senior Amateur, Distinguished. He is well-respected within the community.

“People treat the word amateur like it’s an insult,” he says. “But it comes from amare, to love. We are the people who do the thing for love. Professionals do it for money. We do it for love, and we do it badly, and we keep doing it. That takes equipment.”

He pets Beatrice. “She knows when a session has gone well. She doesn’t tell me. That would be cheating.”

His new watercolor, Sunset Over a Lake (Probably), will be displayed in his hallway, where no one will see it, beginning Tuesday.