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.