This is a plein air painting of the beautiful Sycamore tree in front of the Kimball Jenkins Art School in Concord, NH. This is one of my first plein air paintings and I am very grateful for the instruction given to me by Kim Ross during that plein air class he taught there.
Our assignment was to go outside and paint something we were interested in. I wasn't sure what to paint and so I walked around quite a bit without feeling like anything was really "speaking to me" at that point. I then stopped in front of the main building on the property and asked in my head "What should I paint?". At that point I clearly remembering looking down at the ground and seeing a feather at my feet and the tip of the feather was pointing directly to the big tree at the main walking-path entrance to the school grounds. Painting that tree felt totally right, so I set up my easel and painted this beautiful tree. Painting this tree really gave me an appreciation for how amazing the bark is on a Sycamore, and I loved how the afternoon light was hitting the right side of the trunk. When it came time to select a title for the painting, the phrase "The Greeter" came to mind because it feels to me like this tree LOVES and revels in greeting people as they come onto the Kimball Jenkins property.
now this is where it gets fun...
I have had this painting hanging in my office for a couple of years because I really got a kick out of the fact it was my first plein air painting and I truly loved painting it.
Well, then in Jan of 2016, I had the wonderful opportunity to meet a very special couple, Hugh and Nancy Sycamore who are the parents of the gentleman, Jonathan, whose family owns the barn featured in the Holiday Barn painting. On Hugh and Nancy's car license plate is the term "Butnwd" and I asked Hugh what that means? He said "it is in reference to the Buttonwood tree which is the same tree as a Sycamore tree. And the best example of a Buttonwood tree is the tree in front of Kimball Jenkins in Concord, NH." So that is when my jaw dropped and told them that I had painted that very tree!! I just love how the universe works! Hugh and Nancy now have that painting, and I am very excited that it is with them, and I think the tree is happy too.
This is a plein air painting of the beautiful Sycamore tree in front of the Kimball Jenkins Art School in Concord, NH. This is one of my first plein air paintings and I am very grateful for the instruction given to me by Kim Ross during that plein air class he taught there.
Our assignment was to go outside and paint something we were interested in. I wasn't sure what to paint and so I walked around quite a bit without feeling like anything was really "speaking to me" at that point. I then stopped in front of the main building on the property and asked in my head "What should I paint?". At that point I clearly remembering looking down at the ground and seeing a feather at my feet and the tip of the feather was pointing directly to the big tree at the main walking-path entrance to the school grounds. Painting that tree felt totally right, so I set up my easel and painted this beautiful tree. Painting this tree really gave me an appreciation for how amazing the bark is on a Sycamore, and I loved how the afternoon light was hitting the right side of the trunk. When it came time to select a title for the painting, the phrase "The Greeter" came to mind because it feels to me like this tree LOVES and revels in greeting people as they come onto the Kimball Jenkins property.
now this is where it gets fun...
I have had this painting hanging in my office for a couple of years because I really got a kick out of the fact it was my first plein air painting and I truly loved painting it.
Well, then in Jan of 2016, I had the wonderful opportunity to meet a very special couple, Hugh and Nancy Sycamore who are the parents of the gentleman, Jonathan, whose family owns the barn featured in the Holiday Barn painting. On Hugh and Nancy's car license plate is the term "Butnwd" and I asked Hugh what that means? He said "it is in reference to the Buttonwood tree which is the same tree as a Sycamore tree. And the best example of a Buttonwood tree is the tree in front of Kimball Jenkins in Concord, NH." So that is when my jaw dropped and told them that I had painted that very tree!! I just love how the universe works! Hugh and Nancy now have that painting, and I am very excited that it is with them, and I think the tree is happy too.