Large Paintings

BY BRIAN STEWART

The Peace Gardens I have always been impressed by the resourcefulness and industriousness of the various ethnic groups that are making our cities their home. These inner city community gardens located at Highway 94 and Cedar Avenue are a great example. Not only are they a great use of “unusable” space, but the quantity and quality of the produce grown here is impressive. But the thing that really got me is the peace and serenity of the gardens. All these diverse people, happily toiling away - juxtapositioned with the glass, steel and hubbub of the city. That co-existence was the story I was trying to convey in this richly detailed painting. I spent 3 afternoons there doing a study for this large studio painting and I only encountered one other English speaking person. Later, a 85 year old Korean woman was so impressed with my study, she gave me a gift of some red peppers (lower right in painting) used in Kim Chi. She told me (through her daughter interpreting) how to dry and plant the seeds in the Spring. “The real deal from Korea”, she said. OK by me. 30 x 40 in a silver gilded panel frame.

The AA Meeting Minneapolis is blessed with a strong and active sobriety community. It has many good AA Meeting Houses to choose from with meetings most anytime someone needs one. The meeting house I painted here is in South Minneapolis and features the usual cast of characters sharing their experience, strength and hope. The painting portrays the giving of a medallion for another year of sobriety, a very special event in the life of a recovering person. 48 x 30”, oil on linen, in a turn-of-the-Century style gilded frame. Also available in a Giclee’ print on French Cotton Paper.

Church & State The Minnesota State Capitol Building is one the grandest in the country. Designed by Cass Gilbert, the same architect who did the Woolworth Building in New York and the Supreme Court Building in Washington DC, it is considered one of his best. Across the way is the majestic St. Paul Cathedral by Emmanuel Masqueray. To have two buildings of this class within eyeshot of one another is a real gift for the Twin Cities. Available in a Giclee’ print, 18 x 24, on French Cotton Paper.

Lift Your Eyes Not to long ago I went on a white water rafting expedition down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. The trip was designed for artists with frequent and timely stops for painting, and great food! This was a painting trip I’ll never forget. One of the things one is overcome by when sitting on the floor of the Grand Canyon is how big, old, majestic and special this place is. It makes one feel very humble and spiritual, making today’s personal troubles insignificant. I tried to capture that feel in this 2007 ARC Salon award winning painting. One thing that makes this painting unique is you’ll see a lot of paintings of the Grand Canyon from the rim, but very few from the floor. 30 x 40, oil on linen, in a gold, gilded 20th Century style frame. SOLD

The Trailer Park I love funk, junk, antiquity, American Moderne Design and older pop culture. From these elements I get artistic inspiration and great visual stories. That’s what inspired this painting of a circa 1938 trailer park. This sun drenched, idyllic setting features early streamlined trailers, including the rare Bowlus on the right, a 1937 Ford Phaeton Convertible (my all-time favorite car), a few of my favorite people…and of course, Gustaf my late dog. This painting is not a “found” image as most plein air paintings are, but rather a vision I had and then went out and got the elements. I did the 3 studies, 2 in Bisbee, AZ and 1 in St. Paul, MN and then composed the final painting in the studio. 18 x 40”, oil on linen in a white gold frame custom designed to match the theme of the trailers. SOLD

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The Canoe Maker I admire good handcraft and the Birch Bark Canoe is certainly that. Built of bark, roots, wood and pitch with few tools they’re a thing of beauty. Originally designed and built by the Native American Indians, and later by the Voyagers, it was very important to the economic development of this country in the 18th and 19th Century. It allowed Voyagers to gather and trade fur pelts from the upper reaches of Canada and bring them by river to the markets on the East Coast and Europe. I painted this at the Grand Portage National Monument in northern Minnesota where they have first-rate re-enactors / craftsman building canoes, huts, etc. and doing presentations on that historic and important way of life. 18 x 24, oil on linen in gilded, 20th Century style frame.

The Moose This painting was an attempt to recreate one of those rare moments when I came upon a moose in a glade but didn’t have a camera. I was struck with how big and beautiful these animals are. The image stuck in my mind and I wanted to do a painting of it but I needed to photograph some moose to paint from. As luck would have it, I read an ad and hired a moose caller in Grand Marais, MN who guaranteed to bring in moose. I was skeptical but had nothing to loose but time and a few bucks. He took me out early in the morning and I watched and listened as he bellowed these weird sounds out of a hand made birch bark megaphone as I sat poised with camera in hand. After two hours not one moose. Embarrassed, he asked me to come out one more morning free of charge and was I glad I did. He brought in 5 Bull Moose that morning as I shot many photos that became important reference for this painting. It was one of the most memorable experiences of my art life. 18 x 24, oil on canvas, in a gilded, 20th Century style frame.

Crossing the Saint Croix I like railroad imagery and bridges. I’ve painted them a lot. This dramatic scene with the railroad track, swing bridge and partially frozen river is on a stretch of the Saint Croix River that divides Minnesota from Wisconsin just below Bayport, MN. I spotted the bridge from the road but had to do some snooping and hiking in the snow to get to this vantage point. It was very early this past Easter morning and as I began to paint it clouded up and began to storm creating a dramatic sky and light effect. I was able to capture that in my study for this painting. The reminder for me that morning was: I just have to show up. 24 x 36, oil on linen, in a gilded silver frame.