Tuesday, August 31, 2010

I would like to take you to Frederick, MD

I did some photo-reconnaissance in Frederick, Maryland. I'll be drawing the streetscapes of Frederick over the next few weeks. The history and building stock of the small city are incredible. Here are just a few moments on my journey up and down Market Street and a few side streets. More HERE.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

I would like to take you to Annapolis, State Capital

The plan of Annapolis sets the church and state in their own prominent circular yards bound by a circular street with radiating streets, like spokes of a wheel. The radial streets seem haphazard and run into each other, not evenly spaced like the spokes of a wheel because the hubs are located so close to each other. The results are narrow streets that meet at odd angles, allowing for interesting "flat iron" buildings at those corners, dramatic views and odd lot shapes. The 1700s town seems medieval.The dome of the Capitol draws one up through footpaths between the blocks. I missed the Maryland History course in the public schools. Wow! Quite the claims to fame, Maryland State House! Nice birds-eye-view visitor maps, drawn by an architect/planner I would bet.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Hand-Painted Birthday Postcards

It is so nice to get something in the mail on your birthday, to appreciate that someone thought of you and your day, in advance, and sent wishes on a journey through the USPS to your mailbox. Postcards are a sweet and simple way to say it - Happy Birthday. Recently dug out of the too-crafty-for-mass-production file, these birthday postcards give an extra ounce of thoughtfulness in their tiny watercolored cakes and chandeliers, by hand. In order to produce 96 postcards for Back in the Day Bakery in Savannah GA, I chose a pallette of colors you might find in...ohh...cake frosting, pastels. I tried to keep them somewhat consistent and painted all 96, one color at a time, a loose splash or tiny drop of color overlaid on the printed sketch. YOU can find a set of Birthday Postcards HERE.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

I would like to take you to Fort Hancock, Sandy Hook NJ

I got lucky in New Jersey. On a bike ride from SeaBright, past the recreational seashore portion of Gateway National Park, we found ourselves pedaling through a decommissioned military base with a proud history of defending New York's harbor since 1778. A long row of nearly identical officer's houses along the shore, separated from the barracks and other buildings by baseball fields.

A small plaque claimed this ballfield saw the likes of Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMagio. (right?)
I wished I could wander inside these beautiful old houses.
We learned from NPS guides in these command room bunkers that the munitions testing mission of the Fort Hancock was relocated to Aberdeen Proving Ground [where I used to spend growing-up summers at the pool...] The munitions rolled in by rail and were fired from the mounted guns on this concrete platform toward the sea.
You can find out more about intriguing Fort Hancock's:

No surprise...it's also home to the nations's oldest lighthouse still in use!