Posing with Topsfield Administrator in front of my painting Autumn, River Road. Prints of the painting have rasied more than 4,000.00 for the Tritown Council in memory of Topsfield resident and patron of the arts, Joan Panella.
In 2018, I was commissioned to create a large-scale painting of an autumn image of River Road for the new Topsfield Town Hall. The original painting was gifted to the town of Topsfield by the family of Joan Panella, patron of the arts and like-long resident of Topsfield. The painting complimented the painting of Spring, River Road I created in 1998 for the Topsfield Town Library.
Located at the top of the staircase in the new addition of the building, the painting celebrates a favorite country road enjoyed by walkers, bikers, and four-legged animals alike.
Installed in the new town hall in October of 2018, River Road, Topsfield has become a focal point in the Town Hall. The five panels are the same proportions of the nearby windows, thereby offering a continuation of the natural environment just outside on North Common Street.
The scene is a late autumn afternoon. I chose the image for the way the road takes on the essence of a Gothic cathedral with the tree branches as arches and vaults, glistening leaves as radiant light and stained glass, and the stone wall as the actual architecture.
The painting was created using cotton and abaca pulp and light-fast (non-fading) pigments. Prints of the painting were made and sold as a fundraiser for a non-profit charity chosen by the family of Joan Panella.
The photograph that was the inspiration for the painting.
This combination of photographs, taken during the late afternoon on a sunny autumn day, was the inspiration for the final painting.
Autumn, River Road paintings under contraction in my studio.
This short video shows my pulp painting process I used to create Autumn, River Road.
Here I am using a spoon to layer the pulp onto the surface. I am using cotton pulp pigmented with non-fading pigments. The cotton has a natural texture that mimics the textures of the landscape. The pulp has been beaten in my Hollander Beater for up to 3 hours, giving the medium a silky quality that flows smoothly and holds the pigment beautifully, giving the final work a vibrant surface.
When dry, the cotton fiber will maintain its textured quality, giving the painting an almost 3-D effect that recreates the appearance of the natural space.
My slogan “recapture the emotion of nature” comes from using pulp material as my painting medium.
Every time I walk up the stairs, I feel like I’m dreaming of walking on River Road, my go to place for quiet and meditation.
