The Beauty of Rust and Decay on the BML Railroad

When I first moved to Maine in 1987, Belfast had an operating railroad. The Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad shared the waterfront with a small boatyard and several other small businesses. It had an engine house and a turntable, part of which is visible in the following image.

There was a cannery and a coal company, but by the time I got there the large chicken processing businesses that had dominated Belfast had already ceased operation. I used to love wandering around the waterfront and train yard looking for interesting shots and maybe future paintings. The following shot was taken in 1989. Notice the painted white X with the curved line or drip.

The BML, eventually ceased freight operations and for many years ran scenic tourist rides. Recently, Pat told me, what was left of the railroad and equipment was for sale, so I decided to go take some photos of what remained. What had been the dominant feature of the waterfront has been supplanted by a huge boatyard and yacht storage facility, but the remaining equipment is stored out at the station on Head of the Tide Rd. I found a wealth of decaying and neglected equipment and I took many shots. The following image is one, shot in 2013, just last week. Notice the curving white line near the left edge?

When I saw that white line in the recent photo, it struck a chord and I searched through my old slides and found the image of the red door above that had been taken in 1989. I enlarged the area in question 

and sure enough...it is the very same image taken 24 years apart. The ravages of time and whether have created a beautiful image of rust and decay. I'll leave it to you to decide if the rust and peeling paint is an improvement or not, but combined as a side by side diptych, I think it makes a beautiful image.

Thanks for reading and I'll try to be more active with my blogging in the future.

Fog Bow on a Foggy July Morning in Castine

Fog Bow Wadsworth Cove, Castine. ME, 7/12/12

When I saw the morning fog from my bedroom window, I had a feeling it could be a good day. I dressed, grabbed my camera and headed out to Castine's Wadsworth Cove, popularly known as "the back shore". My feeling proved correct. The light and the fog were beautiful and I knew there was a potential for a "fog bow". A fog bow is a phenomenon that I first experienced last year in the very same spot.

What is a fog bow and what causes it? Here's a brief explanation from Wikipedia:
"A fog bow is a similar phenomenon to a rainbow, however, as its name suggests, it appears as a bow in fog rather than rain. Because of the very small size of water droplets that cause fog—smaller than 0.05 millimeters (0.0020 in)—the fog bow has only very weak colors, with a red outer edge and bluish inner. In many cases when the droplets are very small, fog bows appear white, and are therefore sometimes called white rainbows. According to NASA: The fog bow's lack of colors is caused by the smaller water drops ... so small that the wavelength of light becomes important. Diffraction smears out colors that would be created by larger rainbow water drops."

Some of the other photos from this morning follow.

Fog Burning Off, Wadsworth Cove

Fog, Hatch Cove, Castine

Burning Off, Hatch Cove, Castine

Sun's Reflection, Hatch Cove, Castine

Rainbow Aura in Sun's Reflection, Hatch Cove, Castine

Swim Float, Wadsworth Cove, Castine

Morning Dew Web

When I got back to the house a sparklingly, dewed web caught my eye down by my garden. It was strung about 12 feet above the ground and was quite large in size. The tops of my bean poles can be seen on the right.

Here's a last look at today's phenomenal fog bow, also known as a "White Rainbow"

"White Rainbow"

Both last year and again today when I witnessed this beautiful sight there was someone on the beach that had not noticed it, until I pointed it out to them. The next time you see fog about to burn off, make sure you have the sun behind you and the fog in front of you and you just might get to see a white rainbow.

Influences and Inspirations part 1: Andrew Wyeth

Influences and Inspirations: Beginnings

Back in 1970 I was unsure of the direction of my work and experimented with abstraction, free form, gestural figure drawings, mono-printing, etc. At the time, I was involved in the day to day operation of a small retail, wholesale, and manufacturing business and could only work on my art in my spare time.

Some of my early gestural paintings hanging behind the bird sculptures of Wendy Seller, at the 91 Main St. Gallery in Rockport, MA

1970 was also the year the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston mounted a large Andrew Wyeth exhibition. I didn’t really know much about him or his work, having only seen reproductions of “Christina’s World” in books and magazines. That show changed that. I was was totally captivated by his work. I stood in front of many of the pieces nearly breathless. The drawings were astounding, the paintings amazing, and then I stood in front of “Snow Flurries” and my experience went into the spiritual or mystical realm. I was spellbound and speechless. I could barely pull myself away from that piece.

Andrew Wyeth “Snow Flurries”, Tempera, 37x48”, 1953, National Gallery of Art, Gift of Dr. Margaret I. Handy

I revisited some of the drawings and other works that had impressed me, but kept going back to “Snow Flurries.” Standing at a distance, the painting is a realistic tour de force, moving closer it is a sublime abstract painting that Rothko would envy. Until that time, I hadn’t realized how a work of art could move one so emotionally. Since that time I’ve experienced it again only rarely, in the presence of a Vermeer or visiting the Van Gogh Museum, for example.

When I got home, I picked up my sketch book and pencils and headed to the harbor, where I did the drawing that set me on the path I’ve been following ever since.

Block & Tackle, Graphite, 6x10 inches, 1970

For the next 6 years I did nothing but draw, whenever I could find the time away from my other business. I wanted to hone my skill with the pencil before moving on to paint. Once I started to paint, I found myself much more comfortable with watercolor than with oil and that is what I do to this day.

Some 27 years later, I was stopping for lunch on a photography outing to Tennents Harbor and Port Clyde. I had just finished lunch and as I walked outside I noticed an SUV with PA plates. I recognized the person sitting in the passenger seat as Andrew Wyeth himself. My heart skipped a beat. Should I go up to the window and introduce myself? I was torn. I thought people must come up to him all the time, and I decided I didn’t want to bother him, so I walked on by. As I passed by the car, I realized it was a once in a lifetime opportunity that I shouldn’t pass up even if he was less than receptive. I walked back to the window and he opened it. I told him how much his work has meant to me and what an influence it was on my own work. He smiled and was most gracious. We chatted about art and people we knew in common, including Stow Wengenroth and the Beals, for about five minutes, until his driver returned. It was then that he introduced me to Helga.

In a future post I’ll tell you how I met Stow Wengenroth, the other major influence on my work.

Stow Wengenroth, "Lobsterman's Cove", Winter Harbor, ME, 1941, 12-9/16 x 16-5/8 in.

New Year's Eve Fireworks in Castine, ME

Happy New Year!!!

Just after midnight on New Year's Eve, after the clinking of glasses and well wishes all around, we were surprised by the loud boom of fireworks on the town dock. This is a video view of a portion of them taken from the window of our friend's house overlooking the dock. Thank you to whoever was responsible for the fireworks display. A great way to welcome the new year!

Art Makes a Great Gift

Christmas and Holiday Small Works Shows

Five Current Shows featuring Gregory Dunham Watercolors

Shop locally and support the arts and small businesses

1. "Splendid Snow", Patricia Hutton Galleries, 47 West State Street, Doylestown, Pennsylvania 18901(215-348-1728). One of my several watercolors represented in this show is pictured below.

"Last Light" 4x7 inc watercolor, $600.00

2. "Holiday Invitational Small Works Show", Tarratine Gallery, 5 Main St., Castine, ME 04421

"Winter Shadows" 4x6 inch watercolor, $600.00

3. "Small Works 2011", Courthouse Gallery, 6 Court St., Ellsworth, ME, (207-667-6611)

"Low Tide, Bailey Island", 4x6 inch watercolor, $600.00

4. "Holiday Small Works", Woodstock Gallery, 6 Elm St., Woodstock, VT 05091 (802-457-2012)

"Split Rail, Fence, Pomfret, VT" 4x6 inch watercolor, $600.00

5. "Holiday Gala Show", Betts Gallery at the Belfast Framer, 96 Main St., Belfast, ME 04915, (207-338-6465)

"Beach Cliff Sardines", 2.5x3.75 inch watercolor, $450.00 (unusual in both size and subject mater for me)

All the galleries listed above have many more pieces of my work, I hope you can stop by one that is near you to view my work and the other artists and craftspeople on display. Art makes a great gift for someone you love or for yourself. One more piece available at the Tarratime Gallery in Castine is pictured below:

"A Victorian Cottage on Thanksgiving Day", 4x6 inch watercolor, $600.00

The Evolution or Reworking of a Painting

Here's a side by side, or I should say above and below comparison of my watercolor "The Straw Hat, Monhegan Island", as it has evolved over time.

"The Straw Hat, Monhegan" as it appeared in 2008

"The Straw Hat, Monhegan Island" as it appears today 2011, Watercolor 16x20 inches

I used to occasionally enjoy watching Emeril Lagasse's cooking show and I always liked his comment "let's kick it up a notch" and that's exactly what I decided to do with this painting from '08. I liked it well enough when I did it, but it was a little bland, needed a bit more spice to satisfy my palate. Where before, it was calm and still and as I said a little bland, today there is movement and maybe even a little drama. This is an example of how some of my paintings evolve and come to life over time with just a few simple changes. Another example of "kicking it up a notch" appears in a post below from Feb. 20th '11.

Two Teachers, A Wyeth Painting and A Partial History of an Antique Cape

This was the house of Alan and Martha Ferguson who were neighbors of ours when we first moved to Castine. They were both artists and retired teachers from Stow, MA. Martha did pastel landscapes and Alan had settled comfortably into making humorous cartoons that focused on the doings and absurdities around town for the local paper.

What follows is a story they once told us, as I remember it:

Shortly after graduating from art school they were walking up Newbury St. in Boston when a painting in a gallery window caught their eye. They went inside to get a closer look and inquire about the artist. They were told it was by an up and coming artist, Andrew Wyeth, whose father was the famous N. C. Wyeth. It was one of Andrew’s early watercolors and they fell in love with it. They decided to splurge and pay the few hundred dollars, even though they were living on the meager salaries teachers received at that time.

For years they lived with and enjoyed the painting, but as Wyeth’s reputation grew and his works increased in value, they felt that perhaps they were being selfish by keeping the painting to themselves and that more people should be able to see it. They decided the best way to do that was to loan it to the MFA, which was only too happy to accept the loan. They both felt very pleased that the painting that gave them so much pleasure could now be seen and enjoyed by others as well.

Then one fateful day, years later, they went to the museum to visit with their painting and couldn’t find it. When they inquired about it, they learned that it was in storage. Well, this wasn’t the idea. They had loaned it to be seen not stored, so they asked to have it returned to them.

Now they had another dilemma. When they visited the gallery where they had originally purchased it, and learned what its value had become, it made them even more uncomfortable. They felt it was absurd to have such a valuable piece of art, uninsured and vulnerable to theft or damage, so they reluctantly arranged to have the gallery sell it. What the sale of that painting enabled them to do, was to buy the lovely antique cape pictured above, where they could spend their summers and in which they would live out their lives after retirement and enjoy wonderful sunsets like that pictured below. A nice story about two lovely neighbors who are sadly missed and what can happen when you invest in art.