After the refit

I decided to change the format of this painting from a "folk art"representation to a more realistic version. I researched this topic heavily and learned much about sailing these dreadnoughts of their time.  Sails were made of hemp ( in America, colonists were required to grow it ), so sails were not made of white cotton. Performing the duty of an able seaman or officer was a highly skilled profession, of which is so complex I can't do it justice here, and being an art blog, it isn't necessary.

Bates Road Beauty

I've driven past this barn many times and at a glance, it seemed like a ho-hum painting spot. All that changed with the return of autumn and blue skies. Lots of seniors visiting the nearby park stopped to talk to me, but no one ate up too much of the rotation of the Earth. No long conversations when you paint plain air, you have to hyper focus on the subject and get some paint flowing. I took my new dog with me for company.

Morning light, misty river

On a recent Sunday morning on a search for something to paint, I spotted a dense fog hovering over the Grand River, so I drove up to where a new vineyard and winery is under construction that overlooks the valley. The morning light was just right against the backdrop. I hope I did justice to it.

Spooky house on the lake

This old house, a stop on the Underground Railroad,  is located on the bank of Lake Erie in northeast Ohio.  Runaway slaves were hidden in a room beneath the floor until they were transported across Lake Erie to freedom in Canada. At times, when Lake Erie froze over, people were trapped in the cellar until spring, but could not be released from the cellar in the meanwhile for fear of bounty hunters and the sheriff, as it was illegal to harbor and aid escaped slaves (due to the Dredd-Scott act). That led up to where the slaves, fearing that they were being held for bounties,  broke out of the cellar and killed the owner in his bed with an ax.

 as I was painting the house, I spoke with a resident of the house who had grown up there, who told me she'd witnessed  supernatural  activities there over the years. She's going to give me a complete tour of the house before it is razed by the township to make room for a bigger parking lot for the senior center next door.

Wooden Ships, Iron Men

This painting is of no particular ship, I made it an American frigate. It is on stretched canvas, 2' x 3'. I have painted ships in the past, but I'd forgotten how time consuming they are. I could easily take over a month to do one, as they are detail-oriented and not suitable for an impressionistic style. It is currently on display in the Burton Art show.

Cow-a-bonga !!

I had previously painted some Holsteins at a friend's nearby farm in Holmes County, so I added them to  this "Mail Pouch" to give it some life, because sometime a barn painting ends up as just a big wooden box without much interest.

1952 Chevy pickup

I spotted this old workhorse at a local farm and got permission to paint it. The owner found it in rural Kansas, got it running again, and brought it home. It is solid (no road salt in Kansas) and will eventually be restored.
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Graveyard of fishing trawlers

I painted this recently in Douardenez, France. I was nearly finished and it began to rain, so I took cover under the hull of another ship. I hiked about five miles to get there, so I wasn't  going to give up that easily, even though I was in France.

Joughin's Alley

I was behind Joughin's Hardware and saw these converging angles in the morning light. It's not really about the topic as much as it is defining the light upon the subject. With the right approach, you could do justice to a dead rat, if the light was right.

Holmes County Barn

What painter could resist this. I was heading home from camping and pulled over immediately to take in this old beauty. Too many are rotting away- we will never see the craftsmanship that built these again. Once the roof starts leaking, they deteriorate rapidly.

Old International

I painted this old truck alla prima with my back up against an old barn. Plenty of bees, bugs, and burrs to contend with. The owner has turned down dozens of offers for it.
12" x 16" oil on painted panel.  $350.00

An outing with friends

I painted this scene recently at the Spicy Lamb Farm, located in The Cuyahoga Valley National Park ,about an hour from Perry. These lambs were cute as a button, and when they had their fill of hay they came over to visit with me.

When barns were vain II

This old barn is located at a nearby vineyard. Early farmers to this area took tremendous pride in the barns they built. Not so much anymore. Today it's strictly business, with modern barns having all the grace of a big metal box. The cupolas adorning the top tended to be very ornate, but primarily they served as a way to vent off the heat generated by fresh hay stored in them. When barns catch fire they rarely survive, as they burn like blowtorches.

The Forbidden Barn

I grew up about a mile from this barn. I wanted to paint it while in high school, but the mentally ill caretaker would shoot at trespassers will a shotgun loaded with rock salt. He's long gone, and the new owner was a combat surgeon in the 23rd Inf. Div. in Nam at the same time I was. He  gave me permission to paint there, and I saw no trace of a shotgun.

Pre-Civil War house

I painted this house in Madison Village as an alla prima piece. 8" x 10" on canvas board

The Store on the Commons

I painted this in the tiny village of Mesopotamia, Ohio that has a large Amish population. Many buggies came and went that Saturday morning, including children with pony carts.

Harpersfield Dam

I painted this last fall, but I went back in and added people, which were in abundance that day as it was the Ashtabula County Covered Bridge Festival that weekend.

Truck grave

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I painted this old Army truck a half-mile from my house. The property is loaded with derelict trucks, Jeeps, tractors, and cars from the 60's. I find beauty in strange places.

Whitstable Oyster Co.

I started this painting last summer and worked on it yesterday in the studio. It was a rainy day in Whitstable, England, an active fishing port and weekend resort for Londoner day trippers. 

Tudor house by the river

This house has the Grand River in it's  back yard. 

Old War Horse

I discovered this Vietnam-era Cobra Gunship in a local village.