Wednesday, August 25, 2010

A Stroll through the Past/Santanoni Barn

14x20

There is a Adirondack Camp called Santanoni, back in the woods, about 5 miles back in the woods. It was built in the 1870's by one of those very rich robber barons roaming New York City during those times. He built a Japanese inspired Adirondack home overlooking Santanoni Peak, beside Newcomb Lake. It has history, but getting back to it takes time and patience. My husband and I have walked the 5 miles in and 5 miles out a number of times. About a mile in, they put a farm in an open clearing, built some stone and wood buildings for the managers and workers. Put in a silo and barn. During those times, all they had to do was get back there (which wasn't an easy thing, even for them) and all their food for the summer was grown and stored right on their own grounds. Now, that's the life! Unfortunately, a few years ago, someone burned the barn buildings down, including the silo. The police have concluded it was arson. I recently found this photo of my husband walking near the farm. Of course, I wanted to paint it. I hope to include it in the solo exhibit I'm having this January at the arts center here. If you get a chance, google Santanoni and you can see the camp. It's in the process of being restored and I feel lucky to have seen it before the restoration and after. It's so beautiful.

Friday, August 20, 2010

At the Campfire


8x12



We were at a resort/Adirondack Camp a few weeks ago, visiting some friends who stay there every year. It's called The Hedges in Blue Mountain Lake. Before building our house, we used to take our grandson there every year for two weeks in the summer. What a great place this is! We left at night as the campfire was lit and I took this picture. I'm sure, after we left, a lot more kids were sitting around that fire, roasting marsh mellows, just like we used to do with Matt. It took a couple of weeks to get to it, but I enjoyed painting this.