ORCHARD OVERLOOK, oil on canvas, 48×60
MY LARGE PAINTING “Orchard Overlook” (48”x60,” floating in a beautiful frame made by Jonathan A. Wright), has been in two solo exhibitions and received more favorable comments than practically any other since I completed it in 2016.
But it is too big for most people’s walls. A prospective buyer recently changed her mind when she realized that the only place in her home where she could hang it was a hallway.
So I have loaned “Orchard Overlook” to River Valley Co-op in Easthampton, where it now hangs in the cafeteria above the ground-floor windows.
It seemed to make sense for many reasons. Jonathan and I are both locals. Both he and I have a special connection with and affection for the coop. I was its first hire, as a consultant before a site was chosen and general manager Rochelle Prunty became its first employee. Jonathan’s company, Wright Builders, built the Easthampton store and previously did considerable renovation work on the Northampton store.
The painting draws attention to our region’s apple growers and their rich history (and reflects my lengthy career writing about and photographing New England apples). River Valley Co-op is one of the premier sources for apples in the nation, including many rare and unusual heirlooms.
I am pleased to see “Orchard Overlook” in a place where it can be seen, in a place I value. Next time you are in town, drop by the store, pick up some apples (or other produce or groceries), and enjoy the painting over a cup of coffee or on your way out.
