Pink and Yellow Roses

Pink and Yellow Roses Square

 I recently came across my notes from a demonstration put on by revered American master artist Richard Schmid.  It took place a few years ago, early in summer down in Falmouth, MA on Cape Cod.  Also in attendance was his young protege', Daniel Keys.   It was a thoroughly enjoyable day and I remember being mesmerized as I observed the techniques being deployed - the arrangement of the still life elements, the colors on the palette and even simple things, like how he mixed the grey for a white flower petal in shadow.

Florals are a particular specialty of his, always yielding a lovely result and I used some of his methods, including his palette style
to create this small floral.

Festive Windowboxes

Little House and Snowy Greens

Every year as Christmas approaches, I work on at least one holiday painting. This year, one became four paintings as they were fun to create

The plan was to give the gallery a related grouping during the run up to Christmas.   Window boxes decorated for the holidays became the theme.   This idea came to me as I start thinking about how to decorate my own real window boxes.  The options are endless and I hope my real window box has as much color.

Red Ribbon Window Box

And speaking of color, the palette knife was useful for laying on the thick masses of cascading greens and flowers.  It was also good for creating rustic clapboards with a bit of scraping and multi-layering.

'Tis the Season!

Window Box Splash

Ornaments and Pink Ribbon

Sunflowers and Spindles

Sunflowers and Spindles

Midday sunlight pours into my front room from a south window, now that it's late fall.  The angle of the light is much lower and the rays were casting some very interesting shadows.   These warm red and yellow sunflowers were dazzling in the bright light. The wooden spindles of my staircase sat in the background with some petal shadows wrapping around them.   Some sunflowers were just starting to open, others open with curly, transluscent shapes.  It's alwaysa good day when you are painting flowers!

Homestead Ruins & Pasture - Isle of Doagh Ireland

McColgan Farmhouse

In the late 1800’s, two brothers and their respective families lived and worked two side-by-side farms on the Isle of Doagh, County Donegal, Ireland.    One brother’s name was John McColgan and the other’s name was Edward McColgan. 

    

John and his wife Grace had fourteen children.  They lived in the “larger” farmhouse which was also the house where the two brothers had been born and raised.    Edward and his wife Bridget acquired the land next to this original homestead and had eight children of their own.    In late 1898, Edward contracted consumption, a contagious disease that reached epidemic levels in Ireland and Britain at that time.   Today, the disease is known as tuberculosis.  Sadly, his wife Bridget soon contracted the disease as well.   They died within a month of each other in the winter of 1899.  

Four of their daughters and one son, ages 10, 14, 16, 19 and 21 were orphaned.   Their two oldest daughters had emigrated to Boston years earlier, when they had turned eighteen.   Their son Michael Joseph (my grandfather) had also emigrated one year earlier.

  

There was discussion of the siblings staying in Ireland under the supervision of their aunt and uncle next door, but with fourteen children of their own, John and Grace were likely unable to support five more.  Hence in 1900, the five siblings travelled together to Boston and settled in with their older siblings. The younger daughters moved in with their older sisters, each of whom were married at that point.  One daughter enrolled in nursing school at Massachusetts General Hospital.

As for the property owned by Edward and Bridget, it was sold to a cousin who continued to farm the fields but let the house fall to ruin.   The original farmhouse still stands and is in good condition.   In fact, it was getting a new thatched roof during our visit.   If you Watch The Video, it is the neat little white farmhouse with the red doors.

Donegal Homestead

Maybe you can imagine the feeling I had as I stood on the cart path just above the two homesteads, one farmhouse still standing and the other, barely recognizable ruins.  I had a tingly feeling to think that this was the land of my ancestors, where they lived, worked and died.  The sheep and cattle were probably of the same lineage through the years. Why, even the wild raspberries I sampled were probably the same as those eaten by the family.     Spirits of the past!   This visit and paint-out may have been the most gratifying of all.   I’m hoping the deep rich crimson darks and vivid green lights of the land shine through.