Native Sons

“Native Sons” Original 12 x 32” I’ve had the idea for this painting for a long time. If you follow my work, you know that I have done many bookshelves and cabinets filled with books and sometimes objects relating to the books: decoys, oyster cans, sports memorabilia, old photos, etc. Most of the books and the objects accompanying them are from my own collections. I’ve said this several times before: I’m something of a packrat.

Occasionally I’ll spot something in an antique shop or flea market that I think “might” be a good subject. Often that object will sit on a shelf in my studio for years, and then one day I’ll look at it and get an idea for a painting. In this case the gift of a photo of Captain John Berridge, a waterman from Tilghman Island, sparked the idea for “Native Sons.” I used a black and white photo of Captain John in my major painting “Eastern Shore,” but a volunteer at the Waterfowl Festival gave me the color photo and that photo sparked the idea for this painting.

All the books on the shelf were written by men who lived on or near the Chesapeake Bay. Many are gone now. John Barth, one of my favorite authors was a native of Cambridge, and many of his fictional books are about the area and sailing on the Bay. Harry Walsh, who wrote “The Outlaw Gunner,” was instrumental in the creation of The Waterfowl Festival, probably the most prestigious wildlife art show in the country. Tom Horton, another of my favorite non-fiction writers has written several books about environmental issues and a vanishing lifestyle along the Bay. Several of the books in this painting have shown up in many “Chesapeake Bay” themed still -life paintings of mine over the years.

The decoy is a Ward Brothers pintail, atop two of many books that have been written about Lem and Steve, true Native Sons. I had a wonderful visit with Lem Ward back in 1980, the memory of which I still treasure. I told him then that he was the main reason behind contemporary decoy making today, decoy collecting in general, as well as waterfowl art. He said, “Hell son; I just made a few wooden ducks.” A FEW?! Lem was as modest and kind as he was a brilliant artist in wood.

The main question about this painting that I anticipate is “Who is the freckle-faced kid in the painting?” I have no idea, but I lifted him out of an old sepia photo of a group of children oyster shuckers. Like Captain Berridge, the boy was a Native Son of the Bay.

Original painting: 12 x 32” $6,500.

Giclee prints on canvas: Limited Edition of 100 S/N : Print size is the same as the original: 14x 32” mounted on board. : $300