The Three Bears

The Three Bears ©2020 - A road trip to The Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge in Morris County NJ provided the background image and inspiration for this piece. The bears and fish were photographed at The Turtle Back Zoo in West Orange NJ, the butterfly in Pottersville NJ and the “bear’s cottage” is the caretaker’s house from a cemetery near Long Valley NJ. My “Goldilocks” is a composite of two vintage photos from my collection and the crow is one of many from my travels. As I’m sure you have surmised by now, this montage is loosely based on the fairy tale “Goldilocks and the Three Bears”.  It’s original title, “The Story of the Three Bears”, was first recorded in narrative form and published by British writer and poet Robert Southey in 1837. Prior to that, the story was only in circulation by word of mouth. As it goes, three bears live together in a house in the woods. Each bear has his own porridge bowl, chair and bed. One day at breakfast, the porridge is too hot to eat and they take a walk while it cools off. While they are out, a vagrant old woman called Silver Hair enters the house, eats the smallest bear’s porridge, sits in his chair and breaks it, then falls asleep in his bed. When the bears return and discover her and the damage she has done, she wakes, jumps out the window and is never seen again. The earliest written version was a poem by Eleanor Mure in 1831. It was handcrafted into a book complete with watercolor illustrations as a gift for her nephew, Horace Broke. In her version, the infuriated bears, after finding the woman, throw her into a fire and then into water before finally impaling her on top of St. Paul’s Cathedral and leaving her there. In 1849, Joseph Cundall published the story in his Treasury of Pleasure Books for Young Children and changed the antagonist from an old woman to a young girl to make it more appealing to children. In versions after that, she has remained a young girl although her name has gone from Silver Hair to Little Silver Hair, Golden Hair, Goldenlocks and finally, Goldilocks. Her fate in the end varies in the different versions from running into the forrest, being almost eaten by the bears, to becoming good friends with the bears. I think all would be more appealing   than being impaled as in Muer’s version!  In mine, the bears discuss the fate of their intruder as Goldilocks, entangled by the swamp, awaits their decision. A local crow takes pity on her and tries to give advice while a resident fish seems too enthralled by a butterfly to be bothered with any of this. And always, as the viewer, you are entitled to your own interpretation.

A Matter of Trust

    

A Matter of Trust ©2020 - A road trip in November of 2019 on route 202 just over the border from New Jersey into Pennsylvania yielded a property with an extraordinary bare tree. With it’s huge limbs fanning out and reaching like tentacles for the sky, it became (along with the weather-beaten old barn behind it) the background for this piece. My little falconer (defined as a person who keeps or trains birds of prey) is a carte de visite (or visiting card) from my vintage photo collection and dates from the 1860’s. Most people associate daguerreotypes with that era, but these small cards were albumen silver prints, the first commercial method producing a photographic print on paper from a negative. They became extremely popular and were  commonly traded and collected among friends and visitors during the Civil War years. After some restoration, minor adjustments and coloring, she fit nicely into the composition. Her menagerie consists of a magnificent Andean Condor that I photographed at The Turtleback Zoo in West Orange, NJ and a large venue of black vultures. Oddly, when I photographed them, they were gathered on the roof of a large modern home in a well manicured neighborhood. I thought they looked much more at home on the roof of the old barn and the bare tree limb. The Andean Condor, coming in for a soft landing, is an imposing creature with the longest wingspan of any raptor (10 to 11 ft). As it’s name suggests, they inhabit the Andes Mountain range along the Pacific coast of western South America. These large scavengers, like other vultures, are principally carrion eaters (meaning they eat animals that are already dead). As nature’s clean-up crew, they help keep us safe from contaminates and the environment clean. After bringing all these elements of my composition together, color, texture and select filters were added for the final piece. As the young falconer would probably tell you, a flutter of wings can quicken the heart or soothe the soul; it’s all “A Matter of Trust”.    

Requiem

Requiem ©2019 - The background image of this piece is a rolling field of multi colored grasses captured in the area of Washington Township in Morris County NJ. The wall of bare trees at the rear was blanketed with fog that was hovering over the entire area that day providing an eerie, unearthly kind of mood. I caught the flock of geese on a nearby lake just as they were taking flight into formation. There is an abandoned property in that area, specifically Middle Valley, NJ, that I have photographed several times over the years so I stopped by to do an update and see what changes may have taken place since my last visit. As I wandered through, something white  caught my eye in the underbrush beside the path. It was the skull of what appeared to be a deer. Upon closer examination, the rest of the skeleton seemed to also be there, partially submerged in mud. I decided at that point that at least the skull (which was in remarkably good condition) would find a new home at my house. After a bit of cleaning, it was ready to be photographed for its second life as an art subject. The young lady in mourning was restored from my vintage photo collection, the lilies are from a recent bouquet whose intoxicating fragrance permeated my house for days, and the crow is one of many I’ve captured in my travels. Color, selected filters and texture were applied and the Requiem began.

The Lovely Bones

You fell sometime ago

with no one near to witness

or mourn your end.

Even creatures who roam

the lonely woods should be

remembered; and so I bring

lilies, pale as the moon.

A requiem for your lovely bones.

                   - Darlene Foster 

The Beguiled

The Beguiled ©2018 - The inspiration for this piece came from a favorite illustration by Gustave Dore for Fables of La Fontaine in 1868 titled “The Rabbits” as well as the legend of the Pied Piper of Hamelin.  The background is a montage of two images taken two years apart in very different locations but blended together perfectly for the effect I wanted. Oddly enough, the rabbits (actually consisting of three rabbits in multiple poses) were captured in Pottersville, NJ, two of them on 7-28-18 and one on 7-28-17, same day, same town one year apart!  In Dore’s illustration, the rabbits are startled by a gun shot from a man hidden in the bushes with a rifle and scurry into the forest for protection. In my piece, the rabbits (and perhaps several crows) are being drawn slowly into the forest by the beguiling melody coming from the violin of the lady in white.  As the legend goes, in the year 1284, the people of Hamelin (a town in Lower Saxony, Germany) hired a piper (or flutist) dressed in multicolored (pied) clothing to lure away an infestation of rats with his magical pipe.  When they refused to pay for his service, he used his powers on their children, leading them away as he had the rats. While I’m not convinced my violinist has anything quite so sinister in mind, I’ll leave it up to the viewer as to the fate of “The Beguiled”.

The Wizard's Apprentice

The Wizard’s Apprentice ©2018 - I began this piece with an image of the Raritan River I captured from under a bridge on Old York Rd just outside of Readington Township, NJ. There were some interesting bare trees along the bank that were leaning precariously toward the water in almost a domino effect. Between two of them, looming in the distance, I placed a graceful, white house from Belvidere, NJ. The tall, elegant heron standing calmly in the water as well as the two turtles basking in the moonlight on a piece of floating wood, are from the area of Princeton, NJ. My little wizard mouse is in reality one of my Halloween decorations who normally carries a small skull in his hands. For this adventure however, I fashioned a magic wand for him by photographing the handle of an antique, silver hand mirror and a crystal charm from a necklace. The wolf, faithful guide, protector and familiar to the wizard, was photographed at the Turtle Back Zoo in West Orange, NJ and the young “apprentice” is from my vintage photo collection. A crescent moon, crows, and a dragonfly were added to complete the composition. Texture, color and filters were used to blend the final image and create the atmosphere I envisioned for my traveling trio as they discover what is unveiled at the end of their journey.

 “And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.”  - Roald Dahl, novelist, poet and screenwriter

A Tender Trap

 

A Tender Trap ©2018 - When I found the vintage photo of the girl with the hypnotic eyes in an antique store, I couldn’t wait to use her in a new piece. Even so, I did wait, several months in fact, before the right elements and composition came together for this montage. The background image, with it’s quirky little bent over tree and rolling hills, was taken in northwestern New Jersey just before crossing into Pennsylvania.The Jaguars are residents of The Turtle Back Zoo in West Orange, NJ. These beautiful and powerful beasts were prominent in ancient Native American cultures. In some traditions, the Jaguar God of the Night was the formidable lord of the underworld. The name jaguar is derived from the Native American word “yaguar”, which means “he who kills with one leap”. The Mayans, Aztecs and Inca all worshiped the jaguar in some form. Unfortunately, today they have been eliminated from most of the United States due to habitat loss, over hunting and killings to protect livestock and are endangered in Central and South America. I finished the composition with some crows, clouds, and a large black feather (considered to be a sign of protection by angels). Texture, color and select filters completed the piece. The title was inspired by the 1955 movie, “The Tender Trap” which referred to love. In this case, it seems a trap of some sort is definitely being set; however, I leave it to the viewer as to who is doing the trapping, beauty or the beasts?         

Penguin Dreams and Stranger Things

Penguin Dreams and Stranger Things ©2017 - The title for this piece came from a book by my favorite cartoonist, Berkeley Breathed, published in 1985. I fell in love with the character, Opus the penguin, when I first discovered his comic strip, "Bloom County". I photographed these  adorable, tuxedoed  Humboldt penguins at the Turtle Back Zoo in West Orange, NJ. The Humboldt is a South American penguin that breeds in coastal Chile and Peru. It gets it's name from the cold water current it swims in which itself is named after the explorer, Alexander von Humboldt. Although we tend to think of a penguin's striking coloring as elegant, it is actually a matter of camouflage; from above, it's black back blends into the murky depths of the ocean while from below, it's white belly is hidden against the bright surface. Considered marine birds, penguins live up to 80 percent of their lives in the oceans of the Southern Hemisphere. It is a common myth that they all live in Antarctica. In fact, the Galapagos penguin lives on tropical islands at the equator. However, in the case of my little colony of Humboldts, I've placed them on a tiny island in the Delaware Water Gap in New Jersey where they are joined by a young gentleman from my vintage photo collection who is dressed as elegantly as they are. I added a cold, full moon rising in the background behind the trees, some clouds and several crows gliding overhead. Assorted filters, texture and color created the mood and atmosphere I wanted to complete the piece.

Pale Rider

Pale Rider ©2017 - The title of this piece came from the 1985 western film, "Pale Rider", a reference to the rider of the pale horse in The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse who represents death. My little equestrian (from my vintage photo collection) received the title only for his overall pallor and not for a specific association with death (although I leave any final decision on that interpretation up to the viewer). The tree, with it's skeletal limbs and gathering crows, was captured in the area of Bernardsville, NJ.It fit nicely into the background image of a furrowed  ield of grasses in the area of McGuire Air Force Base just south of Trenton, NJ. The small road cutting through the center provided a  convenient bridle path for the pale rider and a hitch hiking crow trying to  move things along with his riding crop. Clouds, a rising crescent moon,  color, texture and filters were added to complete the mood and finish the  montage.

Tread Lightly at Twilight

Tread Lightly at Twilight ©2016 - Twilight is absolutely my favorite time of day. The soft, diffused light from the sky when the sun is below the horizon and a few stars become visible has a magical quality not present at any other time. The rhythm of the day is fast paced and measured by the hands of the clock, but the rhythm of the night is meditative and measured by the movement of the moon. Twilight, or "half-light", hovers between the two signaling the death of the day and the birth of the night with all it's dark secrets. The background image of this montage was in reality captured a little earlier in the afternoon around Sergeantsville, NJ. I was fascinated by the tree whose trunk seemed to grow horizontal along the ground before swooping upward. The wire mesh containers behind the tree are probably corn cribs used to dry corn, but I chose to fill them with a murder of crows exiting into the sky. Clouds were added along with selected filters and texture to simulate that hazy, watercolorish time between day and night. The young lady from my vintage photo collection was actually climbing some steps carrying a basket of flowers, but I replaced the flowers with a candle to light her way and added some grasses and stones to her path in the foreground. Hopefully, she treads lightly through the gargoyles (trying to camouflage themselves among the stones) as she makes her way through the twilight zone to a romantic tryst.

Valley of the Dolls

Valley of the Dolls 2016 - The title of this piece came from the 1966 novel by Jacqueline Susann, "Valley of the Dolls". Susann used the term "dolls" as a euphemism for drugs and how substance abuse is reminiscent of children clinging to toy dolls for comfort. It was the underlying theme in the pop culture classic about 3 women looking for fame and fortune in the entertainment industry and turning to "dolls" to deal with it's trials and tribulations. The background image is an abandoned building I captured in the area of the Delaware Water Gap in Sussex County, NJ. I was drawn by the weathered, pastel tones of paint and how the bare tree limbs on one side arched protectively over the roof. The building sat very close to a road, so for my composition, I added a pond of water with a cluster of trailing vines from Spotswood, NJ to the foreground. The little girl, with such a sweet expression, is from my vintage photo collection. The doll she is holding onto ( which I have to admit might be considered a bit creepy) is from an estate sale as well as the other dolls lurking around in the background and peeping up out of the water under the vines. The sky was rather bland so I added some clouds, a full moon, texture and of course, a couple of crows to complete the mood of "Valley of the Dolls".  

A Different Point of View

A Different Point of View ©2015 - This piece began with a small, blue robin's egg found abandoned in the grass of my yard. I searched the area  for a nest it could have come from in hopes of returning it to it's owner but was unsuccessful, so I put it away for future use in an art piece. I've owned the bird's nest since the early 1980s when I found it tucked inside the limbs of  my Christmas tree one year. It's had a place of honor on every Christmas tree since. When I came across the old tintype of the lovely lady, I thought the nest would fit nicely in her lap as she plays mediator between the crow and robin, each having "A Different Point of View" regarding rights to the egg. The background started with an image of a grassy hillside with beautiful foreground flowers taken up north in Warren County, NJ. I added an interesting stone structure built into the side of a hill that I came across in the area of Stockton, NJ. The mysterious entrance was totally dark revealing not a clue as to what lay inside  (and a fence prevented any adventure in that direction) so I decided to use my discretion and add a moonlit scene of a garden path from Cross Estate Gardens in Bernardsville, NJ for yet another "Different Point of View". The crows, texture, selected filters and hand coloring were added to bring the final piece together.

Lady of the Lake

Lady of the Lake ©2015 - According to legend, the Lady of the Lake lived beneath the waters surrounding the mystical island of Avalon. This "Lady of the Lake" is comprised of 10 different images. The base image is from a trip to The Great Swamp in New Jersey in 2011. It's not Avalon, but quite beautiful in it's own right. I've tried using it in 2 other compositions before but nothing really came together until now. The lovely lady is from my vintage photo collection and fit in perfectly. I added a different sky with more interesting clouds and a full moon along with several crows flying into the distance. Instead of Merlin, my Lady of the Lake has enchanted a vulture to do her bidding and tethered him with a leash of pale blue ribbon. Numerous filters were added in the appropriate places for colors and tones along with texture from an old daguerreotype bringing all the elements together for the final piece.

The Music Life

The Music Life ©2014 - This still life was built around the lovely, old violin made in Germany sometime in the late 1800's.  When putting together the composition, the first thought that came to mind was the old joke "How do you get to Carnegie Hall? - practice, practice,  practice!" so the first thing I added was the vintage music stand from the 1920's.  Next came the Maelzel metronome circa 1900 which still works very nicely, by the way.  The vintage chest, books, stool and scarf were added for support along with a glass of brandy to help the notes sound better (or worse depending on how much is consumed!).  Last but not least the book, "The Music Life and how to Succeed in it" by Thomas Tapper written in 1891 gave me the title.  To quote the author:  "I am constantly surprised as I study the motive with which many enter the music life expecting to win success in it.  To be an artist one must live the life of an artist; the semblance of it will not do.  You must put heart in what you do.  We all reverence toil but toil alone is not enough; it must have soul.  In one form carbon is but a bit of coal, in another intensity it is a diamond".

The Last Waltz SOLD!

"The Last Waltz" has found a new home with a lovely lady with an interesting connection.  She happened to see it in the recent newspaper article about my show at the Pearl Street Gallery and was immediately drawn to it.  Seems her name is Lisa Kirby (the brand name on the piano in the piece is "Kirby"), she is currently studying the piano, and she lives in the immediate area where I shot the original photo!  Seems some things are just meant to be!  Thank you, Lisa! 

"The Last Waltz" in it's new home!

The Alchemist

The Alchemist ©2013 - Funny how sometimes a composition will start as one thing and somewhere along the way evolve into something completely different.  This piece started as just a still life.  I picked up the bottles a couple of months ago at the estate sale of an artist among a lot of art materials in the basement.  They seemed to have been used for mixing pigments or maybe a substance used in pottery making.  The insides were still coated with beautifully textured remnants of the contents.  I added some bits of dried flowers that I always save from my flower bouquets after their demise for use in various art projects.  The keys were among some of the things left by former inhabitants of my house when I moved in 36 years ago.  I was pleased with the composition but still felt something was missing.  After pondering it a few days, I decided to add a photo of a window in the loft of my garage to the background, some of my backyard birds perched just outside, and a self portrait from 1992.  That provided the storytelling quality I was looking for and completed "The Alchemist".

As the Crow Flies

 

As the Crow Flies ©2013 - This is a montage of 4 different photographs, 3 of which are a result of a road trip along Rte. 57, heading toward Washington Township in Warren County, NJ.  The 4th, a crescent moon, was taken in my backyard.  The base image is the haunting remains of Mount Bethel Evangelical Lutheran Church and cemetery also known as Old Swack Church (named for it's builder, Jacob Swackhammer) erected in 1844.  There seemed to be some clearing and cleaning up of the property going on, hopefully in an effort to preserve whats left of the building and the graves surrounding it.  The wild grasses from another image taken that day were added to the foreground in place of the debris from the clearing.  My favorite part of this piece is the incredible crow that I was lucky enough to capture just as he took flight from a recently plowed corn field.  Upon close examination, I realized he was carrying a tiny mouse in his mouth!  Well, it was close to dinner time. 

The Ball Game

Back to the abandoned property of St. Paul's Abbey in Andover, NJ.  This time, it's looking up a small road running along the back of the large main building.  I keep checking online for any news on the fate of this property but haven't found any recent updates.  As with so many of the abandoned places I've visited, it seems all too few are being restored to their former grandeur and put to good use again.  Most remain lonely ghosts of their former selves that I will continue to photograph and preserve in my artwork.  The distinguished gentleman on the road and mischievous girls hiding in the bushes are from my vintage photo collection.  The birds patrolling the sky are from a trip to Marlboro, NJ and the ball that prompted the title belonged to my beloved ferrets, all of whom have passed on.

The Barnyard

The Barnyard ©2012 - I discovered this lovely old barn, it's smaller outbuilding and crumbling silo on an abandoned property in Marlboro, New Jersey a couple of months ago.  It was late in the day and the light was fading, so after getting as many shots as I could, I decided to call it a day but vowed to return as soon as possible to take advantage of all the great photo ops in the area! The very next weekend, I was back in Marlboro hoping to explore an abandoned factory that I had found too late the week before.  Unfortunately, during the week it had been fenced in and demolition had begun.  However, all the disturbance had attracted a flock of beautiful black vultures cruising the area and I was able to get some great bird shots!  On down the road, I ran across a field of grazing emus!  Native to Australia, these fantastic birds are also farmed in New Jersey!  As I was putting together this composition, I needed one more element.  Lucky for me, an amazing full moon was just rising in my backyard providing the last piece to complete "The Barnyard".

The Last Waltz

The Last Waltz ©2012 - While recently exploring southern New Jersey in and around the town of Marlboro, I came across an abandoned property with a little different twist.  The house itself was not that unusual or interesting, but on the front porch were the crumbling remains of what must have been a lovely old piano in it's day.  I photographed it from several angles but found the close up the most appealing with all the inner workings exposed.  Having never heard of a Kirby piano, I tried researching it's origin online but oddly, found nothing.  I'm very curious, so if anyone has any information on it please let me know!  The "pianist" is one of my backyard birds I happened to catch in mid stretch.  With feathers ruffled and mouth open, he was the perfect addition to "The Last Waltz".

The Other Side

The Other Side ©2012 - A road trip through southern New Jersey a couple of weeks ago yielded another abandoned property just days from annihilation judging from the amount of heavy equipment waiting in the wings.  Located on Rt 130 just outside of Bordentown, there were 5 buildings total- a main house, a large barn like structure and several smaller ones.  This smaller one intrigued me with it's roof sloping in the middle like the back of an aging horse while the fingers of the bare branches on the left seemed to be reaching to open the white door.  What I think drew me most to this composition though, was the broken fence.  The posts on each side frame the little building as the top rail splits into the image like a dagger aimed for it's heart.  Taking in the scene, the blackbird must be contemplating what could be on "the other side" of the fence, or maybe "the other side" of the door.