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"View of Crawford Notch in February"

My artist-in-resident program at the Appalachian Mountain Club's new Highland Center began faithfully on Sunday February 19, 2017. I arrived there in the afternoon with enough time to prepare for my presentation of the Artists and writers of the White Mountain Painters. I began by making an announcement to all the people in the lobby of the lodge who were in from their hikes and resting, to view a film by Andrea Melville called, "Brush and Pen." I explained that I was the artist-in-residence for this week, which was met with some pleasant oohs and positive comments. Amazingly,  I did get a small group of guests that joined me in viewing a lot of exquisite paintings both watercolor and oil, as well as fine literature and music that gave us a nice tour through the 19th art movement of New Hampshire's White Mountains. I particularly liked seeing the Thomas Cole and Frank H. Shapleigh oils that featured the exact view of Crawford Notch from the front of the AMC Highland Center. I had an opportunity to paint from his studio the exact view, but the studio windows were weatherized with double-paned glass, making it impossible to see any view from inside during the winter months. So I immediately knew I would have to paint it from direct observation outdoors. Shapleigh used his studio during his own artist-in-residency at Crawford House (between 1842-1906). The studio is still there with its wonderful history and spirited creeks and unexplained sounds. The Crawford House was replaced by the new eco-friendly Highland Center built virtually on the same foundation.

The next morning, chomping at the bit as it were to actually get out there and do a painting of my own, I set up right in front of the lodge for that very view and for my first painting. Completely exposed to the elements, the morning was very cold in the teens, as I was out there before 8 am. There was a slight northwesterly wind hitting my right side the whole time. Dressed in my black insulated Carhart overalls and my bright yellow and black Progressive Industrial Products paint coat, it would be hard to miss me. I must of looked like a construction worker just standing in the field for hours. I was warm with every part except my right painter hand freezing up now and then.  But after a while of working my hand in a gripping motion, it soon warmed up and I was able to finish the painted sketch that took up to three hours on-site to complete. The people in the lodge were already beginning to talk in astonishment that there was an actual painter with his colors out there  painting in the frigid weather. Something common back in the day as evidenced in the "Brush and Pen" film, where I was amazed to find several works painted in the winter. It was interesting to me that the local people thought it odd and even named me the "Crazy Artist" painting out in front of the center. But no matter, I had already resolved to get even more undignified than this by actually hiking up to Mount Willard to capture the view of the notch from there.

But in this painting, I savored the opportunity to capture the view. I was simply amazed at the sun casting it's rays across Mount Webster as the sun arose. It actually takes a longer time for the sun to appear in the mountains here, more toward 8:30 to 9:00 o'clock am. But when it does rise, it illuminates the mountain facades with an array of exciting colors, even in the winter time. I noticed that there was a stoic stark mood to the landscape that seemed to loom over the notch in a quiet hush, despite a fairly busy highway running through it that clearly has been daunted by the huge mountains of this unique region. So when the sun rays shone through like this, everything changed as the light animated the forms of the mountains.

Another place you might recognize in the painting is Elephant Head. This rock actually looks like a large Elephant's Head poking out of the forest. It was picking up a sliver of morning light on it's summit and down toward the base of the gateway to the Notch. I was thrilled to be painting at the same time the early morning light moved across these huge mountains. The night before, a storm actually came through the Notch, and now the clouds were moving out, followed by a pinkish warmth to the cool new dawn. It gave me a real hope for my success with the rest of the day.

But now, I would retreat back to the AMC Highland Center to warm up with a cup of coffee and maybe some lunch. It's a terrific gift to have all your needs met in the wilderness, allowing you to focus only on painting. I have prepared for this residency for months and now I am having so much fun it feels somehow illegal. But it's a good thing I'm not a legalist, not even a micromanager. No, I'm only a "crazy artist" painting out there in the snow and in subzero weather amazed at what I'm seeing. And for that, really, I don't mind the term at all. After all, I'm having the time of my life!