Still life

Don Blanton, for all his plans, is his own piece of work, and perhaps his own worst enemy. He doesn't want another Theatre Gallery, he says, but maybe he'd take an upscale version of one. He wants a monument to Deep Ellum's past one minute and a toehold on Deep Ellum's future the next. He says he's not a blank check for the center, but promises financial backing. Paradox and pariah, hands-off or hands-on, Blanton has changed the landscape of Deep Ellum, and while he may not like everything about the new vista, he can't go home again. If that's what he's trying to do with the Deep Ellum Center for the Arts, he shouldn't even bother. But through luck or design, he now has the people in place who can make the center happen. He should keep the money coming, but, otherwise, stay out of their way.