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The Gleaners
Oil on canvas, 20″ x 16″, plus included frame
Workers Pulling in the Hay
Wheat is planted in early spring and ripens in early July. Farmers with only a few acres of wheat cut it with a grain cradle—a type of scythe with long fingers attached on one side. The fingers catch the grain as it is cut and then deposit it in a pile at the end of the cutting swing. A skilled cradler could harvest 1 ½ -2 acres a day. One or two people followed the man with the cradle and tied the wheat into bundles using the straw itself. After cutting and binding into bundles, the wheat was piled into shocks and allowed to dry in the field.
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County Road in Calistoga
Oil on canvas, 24″ x 18″, unframed
Greenwood Avenue Bridge
There are 2 Blossom Creek bridges. One is located across from Mitchell’s Store on Hwy 128 at Tubbs Lane. This bridge is Blossom Creek #2 built in 1905, which is on Highway 128 north of Tubbs Lane, at Blossom Creek. The bridge extensions have been replaced by standard metal guardrails. This photo is by I.C. Adams of Calistoga. (Information courtesy Sharpsteen Museum of Calistoga History)
As I continue to study art, I find that I return most often to the Impressionists. Most of my landscape paintings are “plein air” so as to discern color relationship and capture the varying lights in nature. My paintings are not limited to landscapes. I love to “zero” in on objects and study them up close and personal. I did a series on old, rusted, cars that were falling apart. They seemed to have a story to tell and painting them on canvas, seemed to bring them back to life.
Painting is a language all itself, and it is an adventure for me, that will keep me inspired for the rest of my life.”