Creating "Barn Life"

The A.H. Myers Barn celebrates its centennial birthday this summer.

My friend Susan and her husband live in the country and on a property that includes a wonderful barn that turns 100 years old this year.

It is a classic design and built by an Eaton pioneer, A. H. Myers.

To celebrate this centennial birthday, they are hosting a party Aug. 1 with art, crafts, collectibles, living history (complete with actors in the role of Al Myers and a couple of his farm hands,) music, food and "all the usual party stuff," according to the invitation.  In addition, they are also hosting a Barn Dance Party that night!

In conjunction with this centennial celebration and since Susan is an artist, my friend Suzette decided to hold an exhibit of barn-inspired art, specifically photography, painting and mixed media, Aug. 8, at her gallery, Boardwalk Gallery, in Windsor.  The deadline for submissions was July 25, yesterday, and I'm delighted to report that I made the deadline with my three submissions--two photographs and one really large whimsical painting.

But, making that deadline was no easy feat.

First, as any good procrastinator would do, I waited until July 15 to actually go and meet the barn.  Since I was planning on only submitting three photographs I figured I had plenty of time to select images from the evening's photo shoot with Suzette, get them enlarged, framed and ready for both the barn display and the gallery exhibit deadline.

But, I hadn't counted on being charmed by a most wondrous barn and all the magical energy surrounding it.  

I went with the intention of telling the story of age, 100 years of cold winter mornings, hot summer days, ferocious wind storms and soggy, wet springs.  What I found was a very nice, solid, strong, well-kept barn--but little to indicate it was built in 1915.

Walking up the driveway towards the barn I met two sweet cows, Sally and Annie, leisurely lying in their pasture in the late afternoon sunshine.

Sally and Annie rest in cool shade.

As I continued to walk by they ambled up to the fence to allow me to say hello and pet their heads.

Then I met the goats, ducks and an ancient 22 year old cat who Susan describes is "in Hospice."  

All, including the cat, remarkably, were enthusiastic in saying hello and wanting my attention.

Paul, the male goat, sticks his head  through the fence
and tries to kiss my camera.

Paul and Betsy...

Full of playful energy, the goats were happy to have my complete attention. As were the ducks and cat.

add the quacking ducks, Alexander and "The Other Guy"...

...and one very old and friendly cat, Cletis.

I took lots of photos of the barn, but knew that I had very little for an evening's photo shoot.  

But, I had something else--I felt something else and began to describe a crazy, whimsical painting that was coming together in my head. 

As I explained to Suzette, my reaction to the barn was more than just a nice sturdy structure--it was all the LIFE that made this barn so quirky and appealing.

That night I could not sleep with images of a painting dancing in my head--which is a bit unexpected because I don't think of myself as a painter--even though I like painting. When I thought about it, I hadn't actually painted anything in the last four years except canvas shoes and old leather cowboy boots.

When I finally woke from restless sleep, I surprised Ken by launching myself out of bed to scribble down a silly poem that had been composed in an earlier moment:

Hey belfie-zelfie,
the GOAT took a selfie
while the COW did extreme sports above.
The ancient black CAT laughed to see
such a sight and the DUCKS
kum-ba-yawd about LOVE.

It was my road map to "Barn Life," a painting I intended to create on a 30" x 40" canvas, that just happened to be ready and waiting on an easel in my garage painting cubicle.  (I had intended to paint wildflowers a year ago and simply never began.)

With remarkable enthusiasm and rusty drawing skills, I tied on my apron (it reminds me of Mr. Roger's sweater) and found a piece of vine charcoal.  I don't often sketch out a drawing first but this painting relied on a wacky cast of characters that had to have exact placement.

Early sketch of "Barn Life."   

I will not confess how many times I began a sketch and wiped it away--the joy of charcoal on canvas.  Over and over, changing a line here, a character there.

I also decided to use oil paints and not acrylics.  I like that oil is forgiving, of sorts, and that I can work with the pigment longer than just a nano-second in art time.

In my revised "how to meet the July 25 deadline" thinking I had to finish and submit by July 25--not have the canvas dry and ready to hang

That would give me a week before its debut at the barn party Aug. 1.  Challenging but do-able. Right?

"Barn Life" begins to take shape in my painting cubicle in my garage studio. 

This work relies on the barn as the stable center structure brimming with energy and life--including Paul, the male goat who is a photo-hog taking a selfie; the two male ducks roasting marshmallows and singing about love; Sally-the-cow and Betsy-the-goat looking out from the second floor of the barn; Annie-the-cow leaping over the barn's roof; and Cletis, the intrepid ancient cat amused by the whole darn thing.

With my CDs playing continuously and zero calorie fizzy water and diet root beer handy, I began to paint and returned to it every day, spending hours in front of the easel.  As this week progressed I also managed to get my two photography submissions selected and sent off for enlargements.  By Friday night, I knew that all I had left were some of the small but significant details for Saturday's painting--and, if all went well, I would finish in time to take a photo to attach to my submission form!

"Paul, the Selfie--goat" and the other animals
slowly emerge as characters.

"Paul-the-Selfie-goat" in detail.

Yesterday about 5-ish I knew that "Barn Life" was completed and Ken held a backdrop cloth to aid me in my effort to take a more professional image of it.  That image along with my two photography entries were all submitted online MAKING THE JULY 25 deadline!  Woo-hoo!

These are my submissions:

"Barn Life"

 

"Ageless Reflections"

"Held Together"

I will let you know the rest of the story in my next post.