Sunday, June 24, 2012
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
The Promise & The Locked Gate
The Promise & The Locked Gate - I’m posting one of my favorite paintings again on the heels of Father’s Day
as this was my father’s favorite painting and rightly so. My father passed away some time ago. The Promise and the Locked Gate - that darn locked gate!!! This message meant a lot to my dad. Of course we all want to climb the stairs and
bask in the warmth of the sunshine at the top of the steps, of course. But all of us have a gate – a locked gate to
get through. I love when people either
find the key or say, what the hell, I’ll just jump the gate – I’M
CLIMBING! My dad had trouble figuring
out how to get past that locked gate on some difficult issues in his life. I just wanted to share this painting/message one more
time in case some of my friends are wondering how to unlock the gate in front
of them – you know me, I say JUMP IT!
CLIMB, that climb will be so fun and a few BandAids can mend any scratch from the jump!
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Three Highland Sheep oil on canvas
Three Highland Sheep graze in the high pasture overlooking a fjord
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Mark "The Bird" Fidrych , 16 x 20, oil on canvas
Fans everywhere were saddened when Fidrych died on April 13, 2009 in an accident working beneath his truck. This moved me to paint.
Fidrych was a Major League Baseball player for the Detroit Tigers from 1976-1980. In 1976, Fidrych led the major leagues with a 2.34 ERA, won the AL Rookie of the Year award, and finished with a 19-9 record. In the process Fidrych also captured the imagination of fans with his antics on the field. He would crouch down on the pitcher's mound and fix cleat marks, what became known as "manicuring the mound", talk to himself, talk to the ball, aim the ball like a dart, strut around the mound after every out, and throw back balls that "had hits in them," insisting they be removed from the game.
Fidrych was a Major League Baseball player for the Detroit Tigers from 1976-1980. In 1976, Fidrych led the major leagues with a 2.34 ERA, won the AL Rookie of the Year award, and finished with a 19-9 record. In the process Fidrych also captured the imagination of fans with his antics on the field. He would crouch down on the pitcher's mound and fix cleat marks, what became known as "manicuring the mound", talk to himself, talk to the ball, aim the ball like a dart, strut around the mound after every out, and throw back balls that "had hits in them," insisting they be removed from the game.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Icebreaker Mackinaw, Oil & Cold Wax on Canvas
The Icebreaker Mackinaw (WAGB-83) was constructed during World War II to facilitate winter shipping to maintain year-round war-time production of steel. Normally the lake ice thaws at the end of April, but Mackinaw opened and maintained Great Lakes shipping lanes as early as the third week in March, thus facilitating the early shipping of millions of tons of iron ore and other materials. Usually during the first week in March the Mackinaw would head for the strategic area of the Straits of Mackinac to begin ice operations. As conditions would permit she would work up through the St. Mary's River to the Soo Locks, into Whitefish Bay and Lake Superior. Later the icebreaker would work in the lower lakes areas.
She is a variant of the Wind class polar icebreakers. Her design is made longer with a wider beam and shallower draft to allow her to operate in the Great Lakes. Mackinaw was built to be literally land-locked, her size not permitting her to leave the Great Lakes.
A diesel electric power plant delivers 10,000 h.p. through twin screws in the stern and one in the bow. The bow propeller is employed to suck the water beneath the ice allowing the Maierform bow to break the ice. When the Mackinaw drives its great bow onto the ice, the icebreaker is capable of breaking through 4 feet of solid sheet 'blue' ice. Mackinaw has also plowed through 37 ft. of 'windrow' (broken) ice.
Early in its life Mackinaw was used to handle the heaviest buoys on the lakes with the aid of its two 12-ton cranes, to carry fuel and supplies to light stations, to serve as a training ship, and to assist vessels in distress when necessary. In recent decades she continued to extend the shipping season from late March until mid-January. She also served as a goodwill ambassador for the Coast Guard and a training vessel. The "Mac", "Queen of the Great Lakes" as Mackinaw has been known with affection, provided 62 years of outstanding service facilitating commerce in support of the economy of the entire nation. She now resides in Mackinaw City, the community for which she was named.
She is a variant of the Wind class polar icebreakers. Her design is made longer with a wider beam and shallower draft to allow her to operate in the Great Lakes. Mackinaw was built to be literally land-locked, her size not permitting her to leave the Great Lakes.
A diesel electric power plant delivers 10,000 h.p. through twin screws in the stern and one in the bow. The bow propeller is employed to suck the water beneath the ice allowing the Maierform bow to break the ice. When the Mackinaw drives its great bow onto the ice, the icebreaker is capable of breaking through 4 feet of solid sheet 'blue' ice. Mackinaw has also plowed through 37 ft. of 'windrow' (broken) ice.
Early in its life Mackinaw was used to handle the heaviest buoys on the lakes with the aid of its two 12-ton cranes, to carry fuel and supplies to light stations, to serve as a training ship, and to assist vessels in distress when necessary. In recent decades she continued to extend the shipping season from late March until mid-January. She also served as a goodwill ambassador for the Coast Guard and a training vessel. The "Mac", "Queen of the Great Lakes" as Mackinaw has been known with affection, provided 62 years of outstanding service facilitating commerce in support of the economy of the entire nation. She now resides in Mackinaw City, the community for which she was named.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Pauly Fly Fishing the Muskegon...
To paint this, I used a photo from my friends at “Up North Getaway” http://www.upnorthgetaway.com/ Thanks Trever & Pauly – it’s the best picture of a fly fisherman I’ve ever seen and I loved painting it! I’m happy to say, this painting now belongs to Pauly (the fisherman in the water) & his lovely wife.The Muskegon River is a river in the western portion of the lower peninsula of Michigan. The river has it’s headwaters in Houghton Lake. It flows to Muskegon, Michigan, where it empties into Muskegon Lake. Muskegon Lake is connected to Lake Michigan via a mile-long channel. In recent years, the river has gained a certain measure of fame as a recreational fishery, boasting large migratory steelhead, brown trout and salmon.
(24X30, oil & cold wax on canvas)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
