Blissful
Oil on Canvas, 18 x 36
Up for Auction at Wolfe’s Neck Center’s Farm-to-Easel, October 27th, 2024
Blissful captures the serene and idyllic scene of one of my many hazy summer day walks at Wolfe's Neck Center. The painting radiates a warm, golden light from the side while the sky recedes into a muted, dusty blue. In the foreground, a calf stands in a lush, green pasture. The calf, painted with expressionistic color and brushstrokes, is the central focus of the composition. Its posture is relaxed, yet there’s a subtle alertness as if it’s just noticed something interesting beyond the frame of the painting.
In the background, the landscape stretches out, revealing more of Wolfe's Neck Center's conserved open space. The fields gently roll towards the horizon, where a clump of trees marks the pasture's boundary. The trees are depicted in an impressionistic style, their forms softened by the haze - suggesting the vastness of the 600 acres that make up this unique farm and research center.
Wolfe’s Neck Center, known for its commitment to advancing agriculture and mitigating climate change through regenerative farming, is not just a backdrop in this painting but an integral part of the story. The Center's mission to educate and promote sustainable practices is echoed in the vitality of the landscape and the healthy, thriving calf. The painting serves as a visual ode to the symbiotic relationship between the land, the animals, and the people who work to preserve and nurture this unique environment.
This artwork, with its warm tones and inviting composition, captures more than just a picturesque moment in a pasture; it encapsulates the spirit of Wolfe's Neck Center—a place where nature and human endeavor meet in harmony, working together towards a sustainable future. The painting is a celebration of the beauty and importance of the land, the animals, and the innovative farming practices that make Wolfe's Neck Center a beacon of hope and progress in the face of a changing climate.
As a devoted, lifelong learner about everything organic, regenerative, and happy, I’d love to share my journey exploring the merits of organic dairy in this Little Changes except (partially written from the pull-out bed in a camper at Wolfe’s Neck Center.)
The Process
I LOVE this painting! Is that fair to say? Blissful flowed out of me in a dance of cools and warms, translucent and opaque, shadows and highlights. Areas are muted and hazy, and key focal points are painted with intention to lead the eye. Working with this medium reaffirmed how much I love working with oils.
What To Do in Maine
Wolfe’s Neck Center is, without a doubt, the best campground in all of New England. Over the summers, I explored campgrounds across Massachusetts, Vermont, and New Hampshire, but after discovering Wolfe’s Neck, it became the place we returned to again and again. Many of the campsites are right on the water, next to an organic farm, and just a short bike ride away from an adorable snack shack. This campground is the perfect base for exploring coastal Maine with families.
In many ways, Wolfe’s Neck became the place where I truly blossomed. One summer, I spent the entire month of July there. While my preteens explored on their bikes, I wrote the final chapters of my book, Little Changes. As my kids grew up and headed off to college, I experienced my first solo camping trip here, in an L.L. Bean tent I bought for myself. Over time, the sensation of pure joy I felt as I left the town of Freeport and descended down the hill to the campground became the defining answer to the question, "Where do I want to spend the rest of my life?"
And here I am now—a kayaking artist, living my best life with my regenerative garden next to my high-efficiency solar home in Freeport. I owe so much of this to Wolfe’s Neck Center.
Your turn….. Wolfe’s Neck Center Camping.
