Re: Where Are My People of Chilmark?

Almost a year ago now I deliverd a commissioned copy of Thomas Hart Benton's "People of Chilmark" to a buyer in Los Angeles. This buyer ended up selling the painting because at its original size (65x77 inches or 166x197cm) it was larger than he had anticipated...

Since then I have been trying to find out where this painting was.... because I wanted to know.
I had heard that it was sold to a restaurant or club but nothing was for sure so I posted missing painting report with a reward on this blog and saturated CraigsList in L.A. with want ads.

Just a couple of weeks ago the original buyer (Jim) was at a flea market in Los Angeles and recognized person who bought the painting from him. Jim knew I was trying to locate "People of Chilmark".
Jim was bold enough to approach the man, Ronald, and told him the whole story of my search.
It turns out that Ronald is a art collector. After buying the painting from Jim he had the canvas stretched and framed.
Ronald and I had a wonderful telephone conversation. I am very delighted with this happy ending. Thanks to everyone helping with the search and being supportive!
The findersfee goes to Jim.

Where are my People of Chilmark?

Last year I posted my project Thomas Hart Benton's People of Chilmark. I heard recently that the original buyer sold the painting because it was too large for his new house. As far as I could find out, to a restaurant in Los Angeles. I would love to know where it is..... I'll offer a $25 (twentyfive dollar) gift certificate to Amazon or whatever to the first person to contact me with this paintings whereabouts.

Tuesday's in Princeton

As you know I go to Princeton every Tuesday to paint with a group of artists. We take turns bringing a model every week and that is not as easy as it sounds. We paint during working hours and the model has to be able to climb stairs as our "studio" is on the second floor of the old Princeton Center Building. I was thinking to post the painting I make on Tuesday from now on. Here are two to start with, these ladies work at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

Donna Damien is a medical office administrator.

And Regina Roberto is a nurse practitioner.

Portrait of the Grandson

As I mentioned a few "posts" ago, there is just sooo much to paint. The first post for today is of my grandson Christiaan. Coert sent me his school photo along with that of his sister Dana some weeks ago. I thought the pictures were so nice I just had to portrait them. The background in Christiaan's painting is an indoor climbing wall. He loves climbing and Coert takes him every Sunday to an indoor wall close to where they live. Once a month they go to the highest indoor wall in Holland, 21 meters in Amsterdam.

Disposal of the Thanksgiving Turkey Carcass

Spent much of today working on my grandson Christiaan's portrait. My cold is subsiding, last day on antibiotics.
When Peter went to the dumpster across the street, to get rid of the Thanksgiving turkey carcass, the goats and sheep had followed him without him realizing. It was so funny. He walked across the street with the three dogs and it was not until he was way away that he saw the herd coming up behind him. The goats and sheep are often running around loose now because they can not do much harm in the garden and they like to graze the lawn and eat the fallen leaves. The pictures are taken on Peter's way back home.
Hunting season has started and yesterday the first hunter was shot in Warren. We have four deer in the backyard according to Joe the logger. It won´t be long before they come in for birdseed fallen from the feeder.

How the Granddaughter works the Grandmother

I had Coert on the phone this afternoon.... He hadn't shown Dana her portrait. During our talk Dana asked to speak to me when Coert and I were done. It turns out she had seen my last post and knew the painting was finished..... she put the screws to me arguing that she had already seen part of the portrait and just could not wait to see the finished painting... and she is my oldest grandchild... and they were talking about art at school... and this would be just soooo perfect - and... and... and then the meltdown. I agreed to e-mail her a photo. In the meantime Dana had gotten Coert into action and he brought up the picture I had mailed to him. Dana was breathless.
I had lent my camera to J.D. Now that I see this post I see that we somehow changed the the time/date setting.... This photo was taken on the 21st of November.

Portrait of my granddaughter

I finished the portrait of Dana yesterday.... I think it came out well and Dana's parents, Dorri and Coert, are very pleased. However, because the painting turned out to be more than a portrait of the little girl I'll only post this preview of the finished painting until she has seen it herself for real.

So much To Paint

I have been wanting to get to painting "big trees" since the fall colors have hit New England. But somehow other projects just keep coming along my path. First I spent time on the commissioned portraits for Dianne and Sam. A few days ago my son Coert sent me photos of his children, Dana and Christiaan. I just had to do something with that picture of Dana. So here we go again! I had already given up on the foliage and figured on painting tall white pines... Looks like it might be with a snowy background.

My favorite tree..... the Sweet Chestnut

Here is one of my favorite paintings, "the Chestnuts". I have turned down a couple of offers to sell it wanting to save it for the "small painting" exhibit coming up..... Maybe I'll just keep it. Chestnut trees, as you might know, used to be abundant in New England. Around the turn of the century there was a "blight" and all the majestic tall trees died. My barn was built out of chestnut timbers and boards because of that. When I was a girl in the Netherlands my brothers and I would go chestnut picking all through the neigborhood. My brother climbed into the trees to beat the nuts out of them so I could harvest from the ground with my other brother. Now my brothers get together every year and have a chestnut feast together. Potroast, chestnuts, pears, brusselssprouts etc. Once, about 10 years ago I was in the Netherlands around that time and I joined for the festive meal.
My son Coert has named a part of the forest he manages "Elisabeth's wood" because there are so many sweet chestnuts growing there.
Grotere kaart weergevenThats where he harvests with his family. They roast them in their fireplace. Every year at the end of October I think of the chestnuts, and you can understand my surprise when driving in Princeton one day I saw these chestnut trees, small, about the size of apple trees. They tured out to be Chineese chestnuts. They are in the yard of the Mirick family, on Mirick road. John Mirick is very active in the organization to grow blightfree chestnuts for New England. The American Chestnut Foundation.
Have a look and hopefully you too will appreciate the beauty of these majestic delicious fruit-bearing trees.

After thought...

Both of the painings I had submitted for the Princeton Art Society's Farm/Art Day sold at auction for the asking price..... They were both bought by the owner of the farm.

Big Trees: cutting them down and painting them

Logging started in our woodlot and there is no way we can stop it now. If they had only started way in back, but they began in my enchanted forest.... It will take a while before we go there again.
The leaves are changing and I will start to paint tall trees again. Below are a couple of paintings that were sold to a neighbor some time ago.

After Glow: Moving on....

I mentioned yesterday to my son Coert how this project has taken more out of me than I had expected. The build-up went fine but the organization of the exhibit and especially the opening, that wonderful opening, took it's toll. Added to all this excitement was the (short) visit of Peter's brother Anne and his wife Feli from Brussels. I needed a few days just to recuperate!
My friend Paul Gunnerson sent some photos he had taken of the exhibit. Lets use them to close this project down. It has been a wonderful experience for me and up to now I haven't heard of anyone who did not want their portrait.... As a matter of fact most of them have been framed by Cliff before leaving the store.

After Glow: the embers

Mixed feelings today. On the one hand still elated that my work was so well recieved and the opening was a success. On the other a touch of the "empty nest" because I had gotten used to looking at thirty-some portraits strewn about my studio these past months. The question arises: what's the next project? I'll need a couple of days to think about that.
Last night I had a nice long talk on the phone with my favorite daughter in law, Dorri. We talked about pretty much everything..... coming of couse to the grandchildren Dana and Christiaan. Dorri told me that their school had posted photos of the children. Look here for Dana, hit your back button and click here for Christiaan.

the Sales Pitch

It has often been suggested that I should do more to promote the sale of my work. The truth of the matter is that most of what I want to sell has been sold, although there are still a number of unique urns in my barn and paintings in my studio. My primary motivation, as stated in my profile, is "art for the art of it". But hey, you want me to paint something for you? Let me know. I work on commission and a 3 x 5 inch, or 9 x 15 cm photo is all I need if the subject for whatever reason can't sit in my studio. An old photo, a new one or one of your house, whatever. If you see something you like on these pages, again, let me know we can talk.

By the Way

This is a photo of my granddaughter, Dana Elisabeth, carrying my paintbox through the landscape which I had just painted. The "Ermelo Heath", closeby to where my son Coert and family live in the Netherlands. Although it's already two years old it is one of my favorites.... click in the image for the big picture.

Painting commissioned from photo

This painting of a birthday party reprsents three generations. The mother of this little girl is the one who asked me to paint this from a 3x5 inch foto. The great-grand mother (right), and the grandmother(left), died recently. The mother of this little girl wanted to have this moment saved in an oilpainting.