Reprinted from The Norwood Bulletin - December 9, 2004

Artist Draws on Instinct to Understand People

Profile of the Week

When it comes time to really getting it down, really seeing what a person's all about, he goes right to the heart. Or, rather, the reflection of that es­sence. "The part that I love to do the most is the eyes - the win­dows to the soul," said artist Henry Eno. "I love trying to get that watered look, that 3-D look."

Eno has been replicating people for years, delving into their character and reproducing it on canvas. But for him, the fascinating part is the person as a real human being, rather than the sketch dimension. "I love people - looking at people, analyzing people, inter­acting with people," he said. "I love meeting for the first time," and figuring them out.

Eno will have time for several meetings as he just began his lifelong wish of opening up a portrait gallery. Henry's Portrait Gallery opened at 850 Washington St. at the end of last month.

"I've always, on the side, been doing portraits," said Eno, 43. "Since high school I've been selling pictures." But Eno's artistic roots stretch much earlier than his high school years. In fact, it extends before his years. Eno's grandfather, Henry Eno, Jr., had tremendous talent. "My grandfather was a great artist," said Eno, who is Henry IV in his family. "My father (Henry III) can't draw a straight line. "...My grandfather also was an inventor, who made a full schematic of a chainsaw about 1940. But he never followed up."

Drawing came easily to Eno, who never met his grand­father who so influenced him. "I think I already knew in grammar school," said Eno, who grew up in Dedham. "In high school, I did all the sets for the plays."

After graduating Dedham High School in 1978, Eno at­tended the Massachusetts Col­lege of Art for two years. But he couldn't conform to the school's artistic ideas and land­scape painting. And then, there was sports. "I was really into sports," Eno said. "There were no sports teams at the Mass. College of Art. But that wasn't the reason I was resentful. The painting classes didn't work for me. I always wanted to do portraits."

Eno worked in the printing trade at Henry S. Wolkins in Walpole, and managed a couple of gas stations - first a Sunoco in the Wayland-Natick area and then Citgo in Norwood nine years ago, where he is working today. But he never stopped drawing - mainly sports figures - on the side. He moved from Natick to Norwood in the mid '80s, mar­ried Jill in 1991, and moved to Walpole in 1996. The couple are the parents of Henry V, who, like his title suggests, is five years old. A few months ago, Eno finally had the opportunity he was looking for. After the Norwood Bulletin moved out of 850 Washington St. to Norwood Center, the office was split in two. Revival's took over half of the space, leaving a slot open fora small shop.

The day after Thanksgiving, Eno's dream came true. "It was a good time for this to happen," he said. Eno, whose studio is filled with his paintings of famous athletes, generally works from photos that families supply. It takes about four or five hours to do a black and white portrait, and six to eight fora color one. "My favorite part is presenting it to someone," he said. "I like to see who it's for. Luckily, I never had a questionable reac­tion." The studio is open four days a week - Wednesdays through Fridays from 2-7 p.m., and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

"I always had the heart to open something like this," he said. The heart. And the eyes.

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