From my 5th floor studio window I watch the freight trains. There is something anachronistic about them in this age of Fed Ex and the Internet. Mythical, romantic even, like I'm in another century. These could be logs from 1913, traveling from Maine to a shipyard in Brooklyn or Baltimore.
They reminded me of this old photo I have of a ship being built.
(Click on pictures for a better look.)
Oxen!
(Oxes?) (Ox's?) Ox, plural.
(Click on pictures for a better look.)
Oxen!
(Oxes?) (Ox's?) Ox, plural.
Georgia O'Keeffe painted objects so that the viewer would see them in a new way.
I keep trying to capture things in words and paint. Not actually the thing, but its essence.
Painting is totally absorbing. I like that I don't have to think.
Also:
Those logs appear to be telephone poles, probably headed for the New Jersey shore. I like freight trains, too, and the sounds they make. There is a revival in hauling freight by rail out here in the west. I predict there will be an even greater emphasis on rail freight in the years to come. Have you counted how many times in a day they go by your studio?
ReplyDeleteAh ha--hurricane rebuilding. Interesting that there's a revival in rail freight hauling. I haven't counted, but there's at least one every time I've been there. I always watch--there is something so compelling about them.
DeleteYou sure have something interesting to look at , when you take time for your coffee Jen.
ReplyDeletelots will be happening in that shunting yard..The poles are very big.. your friend Karen might be right.. they could be telephone poles.
happy week and enjoy your painting
val
I'm enjoying having an industrial view--it gives me much to think about.
DeleteI love places where you're removed from place or time.
ReplyDeleteThere's a bog train yard just across the Charles River from me, next to the Pike, in Brighton. When I go to bed and everything is quiet, I can hear their whistles as the cross over under the B.U. Bridge and pass by MIT. There's something calming about their sound.
Bog train yard!? I love the word bog--you rarely hear it (in this country anyway.) I can hear a train where I live too, and I know exactly what you mean about the sound being calming. Sort of like church bells.
DeleteYou mention that you don't think during painting, but perhaps you automatically(spontaneously?) think some essence and it makes you comfortable. Thank you for the Japanese painting, hanami, which I've never seen.
ReplyDeleteI love that you have a word for viewing flowers by day, and another one for viewing them at night!
DeleteI know a lot goes on subconsciously when I paint...
It is always so good to have 'a room with a view', whatever that view may be ... another world to ponder and get lost in. M x
ReplyDeleteYes, I'm seeing new things!
DeleteI am crazy about your shipyard picture, and am also jealous of that view, which does seem like a moment preserved from long ago.
ReplyDeleteThe picture is really cool. It has some water damage, but I don't care.
DeleteI like what you said about capturing an "essence", that's really what it's all about.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed stepping back into time with you Jen! A lot has changed, but on the other hand stayed the same as well :-)
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely day!
Madelief x
I've always loved trains. During the many years that I've commuted to New York on the train I don't think I ever tired of it. There's something so soothing and relaxing about the chug alug. Whenever we travel to another country we ALWAYS make sure we include a train trip and I get all child like excited.
ReplyDeleteit's a beautiful vew you have from your window Jen
ReplyDeleteI agree painting, drawing, sketching = not thinking ;)
lovexoxox
I love the path your post followed today. The old pictures are beautiful. I hope you have a beautiful day.
ReplyDeleteYour shipyard photo is amazing. I can only imagine the engineering feat that must have been during that era. Railroads continue to play a vital role in our little community. While not as prominent as in the past, we know that our local economy and many jobs are dependent upon that very important freight train. I do miss the days of the caboose.. my brother and I would always watch to see who could exclaim, "I saw it first!" Enjoy your impressive ... ever changing view.
ReplyDeleteI ride the commuter train sometimes and Amtrak, but I haven't really thought about freight trains in recent years. They are fascinating.
Deletelovely view. I'm obsessed with trains :)
ReplyDeleteI din;t know that about you. Have you ever seen the movie The Station Agent? One of my all-time favorites.
Deletei always enjoy refinding a little thing that cannot change, or hasn't changed in decades, despite the technological advances of our age.... logs still need to be carried.
ReplyDeletepainting - it's a relationship of thought and intuition for me, sometimes a battle to allow intuition first voice.