Vintage Paintings

Last year I was sent a link to a newly created web site, retrographer.org. The site features over four thousand historic photographs of Pittsburgh. At first I wasn't sure what to do with these images. But after spending many hours looking through the photos I felt visually transported into Pittsburgh's past. So why not paint from these powerful images? I liked the idea of building an imaginary bridge from my studio to the rugged terrain captured in these images.

To retain the historic quality I limited my palette to just three or four colors. In some odd way it made them feel even more real. Many images from the late 1800s to 1950 illustrate difficult and austere living conditions. Sadness seems ever apparent in the faces of the adults and children. This new series attempts to depict that feeling while also allowing me to step into a different aesthetic.