A Change in Season ~ Off to the Cabin in the Woods!
I was talking with my brother the other day and he was telling me that one of these days he’d like me to do a painting of his log cabin. He said he has a favorite picture of it in the snow, with the trees bare and I could easily picture it. He built his own idyllic get away log cabin in the woods using historic hand-hewn wooden beams he recovered from a nearby dilapidated cabin. After his boys are fully grown and he retires from work he may live there year round.
When I was a kid I used to think I’d like to live in a log cabin. I actually drew a few log cabins long before I knew I wanted to be an artist. Recently, I was playing golf with a friend who told me of his wish to have a log cabin as a getaway home, maybe near his college town of Blacksburg. It wouldn’t be too far away so that they could get there easily. It would have some of the niceties of modern day living inside but look rustic in appearance. I told him that I have had the same thoughts over the years and I told him about how my brother Tom actually built his cabin.
What is it about a log cabin in the woods that is so appealing to so many? I saw on Facebook someone posted a picture of a historic log cabin somewhere that they had visited and there were all kinds of “likes” and comments of “I would love to live there”.
If I were to guess, I’d say it might be the tranquility that the image evokes. Maybe an easier lifestyle. Being able to put your feet up and listen to the crackling of the fire in the stone fireplace. Open windows and fresh air. A porch to rock on and view the distant rolling hills. Peace of mind.
The other night a friend asked me if in this slow art market “have I ever thought about doing something else rather than painting to make a living?” I’ve been painting full-time now for over 23 years. I’ve discovered that painting is my “peace of mind”. As the season changes to fall and winter, when it used to be hard to put the golf clubs down and it used to bother me having shorter days, now as I get older I look forward to having more painting time. I’m enjoying painting more than I ever have. There are so many more scenes that I would like to paint and time is a precious commodity.
I’m just as happy painting a log cabin in the woods as I would be living in one! Which reminds me, I thought I’d share a commissioned painting that I did a number of years ago for MBNA. They built quite a few beautiful log cabins on a mountain side in Camden, Maine as a place to stay for business retreats. Rustic on the outside but luxurious on the inside. When I first saw them I wanted to move in!
The winter snow and cast shadows amongst the pine trees added to this idyllic setting. I could smell the logs burning in the stone fireplaces as I photographed the cabins. It seemed the perfect place to sit and have a hot chocolate or sip on a scotch or bourbon and read a good book after a few hours of cross country skiing. Peaceful and relaxing.
A simpler life is what these cabins symbolize. Peace of mind comes in many different forms and is desperately sought by so many. I feel very lucky and fortunate to be doing what I love to do for a living
I would love to hear from you log cabin lovers!