Winter’s Solitude
Winter’s Solitude As much as I love technology and gadgets there is something very appealing to getting away from it all now and then. I think sometimes a person needs a bit of isolation to clear out the everyday noise that builds up over time. It also allows a person to really reflect on themselves and their life. That is how my latest artwork came about. I wanted to do another cabin winter scene that played around with the idea of solitude. Kind of a person in tune with nature theme. The solitude I refer to for this piece is aimed basically towards society and modern life. A chance...
Read MoreNorthern Lights – Holiday Edition
Northern Lights – Holiday Edition This was a piece that came about as a commission request for the National Rifle Association to use as their 2011 greeting cards. They wanted to do a holiday take on my previous “Northern Lights” artwork. This placed more emphasis on the cabin as opposed to the surrounding scenery. The cabin has been decorated with garland, bows, and lights in a subtle way for a festive mood. You can also catch a glimpse of a Christmas tree in one of the front windows. The final touch is a large wreath adorning the shed out back. What I also wanted to...
Read MoreSugar Creek Cider Mill
Sugar Creek Cider Mill A delivery of fresh picked apples from the local “Apple Blossom Orchard” arrives at the mill ready to be ground and then pressed into cider. The dogs watching and wanting to know whats going on, one of them even sampling one of the apples to meet his approval. Of course there will be a special batch of hard cider on hand for the adults later on in the evening. I proudly present “Sugar Creek Cider Mill” for your viewing pleasure. There actually is no Sugar Creek Cider Mill here in Iowa. There is a Sugar Creek and it did have a grist mill...
Read MoreEnd of Day, Beginning of Winter
End of Day, Beginning of Winter I love all of the color a sunset or sunrise brings. The way shadows move across the landscape as the sun changes position. In this piece I wanted to play with the contrast of the cool colors of the snowy landscape against the very warm sunset and color bouncing off the clouds. Another area that I wanted to experiment with was the dark patterns of the tree limbs intertwining against the sky. With the title I was also exploring the idea of the end of one time period with the start of another in different...
Read MoreCrossing Cedar Creek
Crossing Cedar Creek The Cedar Bridge was built in 1883 by Benton Jones over the Cedar Creek in Madison County. It was 76 feet long and one of 19 covered bridges in the county. The bridges were covered by order of the County Supervisors to help protect the expensive large flooring timbers. In 1921 the bridge was moved about a mile further down creek and was the last bridge allowed to have vehicles on it. The bridge was destroyed by an arson fire in the evening of September 3, 2002. A replica of the bridge built according to the original plans and authentic materials and methods was dedicated...
Read MoreNorthern Lights
Northern Lights If you have ever been fortunate to see the aurora borealis it is something you will never forget. I was lucky enough to see them once when I was a kid and have been fascinated with the phenomenon ever since. I have always wanted to do a piece incorporating the northern lights and thought a nice winter cabin scene would be a perfect fitting. I wanted to play with the contrast of the warmth coming from the cabin windows against the cold of the rest of the scene. Topping the whole thing off is natures idea of painting in the sky with the aurora borealis. Another thing that...
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