On Sunday, I was pleasantly surprised with a visit from Alan deCheubell, my inspiration for the newest edition to the Maine Men Series, “Rowing Old Tyler”. After having read his story in the MDIslander last winter, I knew he would make a great edition to the series. Alan is a very skilled woodworker and craftsman living in Bar Harbor, known for his beautiful cabinets and furniture. Sadly, as he has gotten older his eye sight has started to fail. So to make the best of it, he decided to move away from the detail work and focus on a larger project, building a boat. His chose a Rangeley design that can either be sailed, rowed, or powered by motor. At the first launch, Alan christened it Old Tyler with a bottle of Moxie and set her out for a spin on Echo Lake. It is a beautiful boat and an even more wonderful story of perseverance and a passionate dedication. Plus, I love that he used Moxie instead of Champagne….very Maine. So needles to say, it was a pleasure meeting the man who helped make my painting come alive. Thank you, Alan.
A few new works to leave the Studio
This past week, I had three new commissions leave the studio. They were all so different, and I loved working on them all at the same time. Generally, I like to keep two to three Starboard Series paintings going at one time. I often find that if I get stuck on one painting I can move to the next one until I’ve figured out my next step for the one that stumped me. Helps me keep that creative flow.
The first one is called Bella Vista and Sea Safari. It was actually full chart size, however I only took an image of the painted area so it could be seen more easily. The clients wanted their boat heading to their dock, with a view of their property and an icon to locate their home on the Sound. Also, a special request was made to incorporate their pooch, Beau. Love that he’s a boat dog! The next was Kayaking to the Seals in Bar Harbor. This one was given as a gift so they could remember the time they spent in Bar Harbor. It turns out kayaks are quite popular and has inspired me to do more kayak paintings. The last one is Lady Lauren. A classic lobster boat with big waves – love painting these. Any time I can paint big waves it’s a fun time. All of the images were taken in the studio as preview images.