A Trip to the Midcoast (Day 3)

I think we saved the best for last. On our way back out of the Midcoast, we made two lovely stops on a beautifully sunny day.

First up was the Beech Hill Preserve in Rockland, which doubles as a working organic wild blueberry farm. This spot was recommended by a coworker of mine, and has some stunning views. It's also far less trafficked than Mount Battie, thanks to the fact that you have to do a (rather gentle, if you're not carrying a toddler on your hip) hike up to the top.

Finally we stopped at the Olson House in Cushing. Here I'm glad that Mr. Cleaver had me do some reading up on the Olson's and Andrew Wyeth's relationship with them. Without context, the Olson House is nice, if a bit dull, as it's basically an old empty farmhouse. With context, the place has a lot of resonance.

I mostly read the 1982 book by Betsy Wyeth, Christina's World, and the first chapter of Richard Meryman's 2013 Andrew Wyeth: A Spoken Self-Portrait, both of which I found helpful. We also picked up Andrew Wyeth, Christina's World and The Olson House at the Farnsworth gift shop. I haven't read it yet, but according to Mr. Cleaver, it tells more about the history of the house, in particular what happened after siblings Alvaro and Christina died.

After wandering the house and grounds, including a visit to the A. Wyeth and Olson graves, we drove back to Thomaston for a nice lunch at a local cafe, then it was back on the road and back home.

Beech Hill Preserve, Rockland Olson House, Cushing Thomaston Cafe, Thomaston

A Trip to the Midcoast (Day 2)

Day two of our trip took us to see two different kinds of beautiful sights, 1) the stunning views of Camden from the peak of Mount Battie (fortunately very accessible by car) in Camden Hills State Park where we got LMC the first stamp in her Maine State Parks Passport, and 2) the American art at the Farnsworth Art Museum.

The Farnsworth is known for its collection of paintings from all three generations of the Wyeths, N.C., Andrew and Jamie. Mr. Cleaver is a huge Andrew Wyeth fan (I'm most partial to the more fantastical to N.C. myself, but enjoy them all), which was a big part of our decision to visit the area, and the Farnsworth collection, particularly of Andrew Wyeth studies and paintings did not disappoint. I was particularly struck by the 1982 work Adrift.

The day as a whole, made me itchy to do some painting again, which I haven't touched in far too long. (So many art forms, so little time).

Camden Hills State  Park/Mt. Battie, Camden Laite Memorial Beach Park, Camden Farnsworth Art Museum, Rockland

Putting Things on Walls

This weekend I finally took the plunge and put some nails in the walls.

Of course, since we spent so much time spackling and painting, I tried to make sure all the holes went in the right places. It would have gone a little faster (all-in I think it took me 2 hours to do the collage wall) had my templates not kept curling and falling off the walls, but in the end I think everything lined up pretty well.

The art in our home is mostly things made by friends, family, or myself; concert posters; and the odd print or two we've picked up in the past couple of years. Pretty much everything is tied to some kind of memory/person, even if it's not a photo of them.

Top row (from left):

• King Salmon photo taken by me Spring Break in Seattle my senior year of college;
• Wilco Sky Blue Sky Tour Poster by Pfahlert Creative Labs from concert we attended in Millennium Park in Chicago;
• REM, New Adventure in Hi-Fi, promo art.
• Low Anthem Live! Poster by Hatch Show Studio from Space Gallery show last year

Middle Row:

• My dad's Sargent Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band Album
• Laura Veirs mermaid concert poster by Diana Sudyka from show at Schubas, Chicago. (I had to sweet talk the doorman to let me take it).
• Painting by me
• Horseshoe from house my senior year of college
• "Sweet Cookin'" Sailors drawing by Brenna in honor of being tap dancing stage hands  for Rough Crossing at Portland Stage
• Mr. Cleaver's concert ticket collection

Bottom Row:

• Print by local artist, Shannon Rankin.
• Postcard. Winslow Homer, Looking out to Sea, Cullercotes 1882 from Portland Museum of Art
• My dad's Abbey Road album
• Salt & Sea Piano Keys print by Evan B. Harris
• "never do this" painting by Biz, birthday gift.
• Mail-holding Lobster - wedding gift from my sister-in-law and her husband.

Over fishtank: Rae Lake. Photo by my Dad.

On top of bookcase:  Alvaro & Christina print by Andrew Wyeth

On Far Wall: "Owl Cat" by Drew Foster (gift from friend/artist)

Family Snapshots and old cameras, including our engagement photo by Ryan Ward Thompson.

More family photos. Eventually I'll get some books up on these shelves as well.

On wall : (Top) Photo by my Dad, taken when he was in college. (Bottom) Photo taken by me in Seattle.

Fish sculpture: Designed by me, made by my dad.  This is actually the model for the mailbox stand at my mother's house (which is obviously much much larger).

I've still got some more things to hang, but I'm glad I got this much up. It definitely changes the feel of the room and makes it feel more homey.

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In other image-related news, I started a Pinterest account and I love it. It saves me from saving all those inspiration images to my computer and I can drool on them from anywhere. Follow me if you'd like, and let me know if you have an account!