14 Mile Point Ghost Light

[AlArchie]

East of Ontonagon along Lake Superior's shore is the derilect 14 Mile Point lighthouse. It was deactvated in 1945 and gutted by fire in 1984, but mariners and fishermen still sometimes report the light as operational and have observed lights in the windows of the brick structural remnants.

Any way here's my rendition of the light as seen in the dark. I did this as an experiment with stains and washes to see what night time effects I could get so it's not a very detailed carving and it was done on an 8x10x1 basswood block so the edge was not worked. When it was finished I didn't want to relegate it to the trial pile so I framed it up in rough cedar.



Al

[Dagwood]

really nice carving of some interesting history

[Irish]

Al, love the carving!

As you noted in your post adding the color to the work was all about the light. You have three light source - the lighthouse beacon, the full moon and the windows in the house.

It is as important to capture the reflected or 'landed' light as it is the light source. You have the light sources very strong - excellent. What I would like to see now is where does that light strike another surface or dissapate (sp) because of distance.

The moon color is perfect. The moon light would act exactly as a candle light. The sky close to the moon would be the brightest and the sky would darken as it moves away from that moon.

Keep the purple - love it. But try adding some dark navy blue about one third of the way away from the moon and then some cobalt blue black in the last third of the sky.

The lighthouse light would strike the tops of the trees behind it. Maybe some yellows worked along the canapy edge of the tree line would show that light. The tall trees might have some of the same yellow worked along the side of the tree that faces the light house.

OK ... that's what I might add to your painting.

Now ... I absolutely love the little light surprise that you have already included in this .... the One Black Window ... That's is great art as I know that's the one room that has no light at all. Very well done!

Susan

[AlArchie]

Thanks, Susan, that's exactly the type of advice I was hoping for. Trouble is I know the effect I want....just don't know much about how to accomplish it.

Can the darker blues be added over in a wash or better dry brushed on. There is a matt finish on the piece now so I will have to work over that, no matter what, but adding over the finish might even add some depth to the sky.

If there are other suggestions from anyone else, I'd appreciate them, also.

Al

[tomrsey]

That is very nice Al. You did a great job on that. Now...how many more light houses on the Great Lakes???

[Thor]

I like the piece for the simple appeal of the image, along with the colors you used. Susan's suggestions seem well pointed, and I went back and thought about them after reading them.
I honestly like it the way it is very much. I would call it a folk art style, and the painting skill level echos the shapes well. You might consider leaving it the way it is, and trying Susan's suggestions on another one.

Christina

[Lynn O. Doughty]

I like it! Very folky. Like they say on Antique Roadshow.......don't touch it! It only decreases it's value! Great job!

[AlArchie]

Well, I fooled around with the dark blues and decided to add them in a dry brush application. I like the way it turned out but I also like the original purple. As this was a "practice" piece, I learned from both. Folks around here and at our club seemed to like it with the new blues added.

Here's a photo of the lighthouse with the blues added, and some highlights on the trees..

I appreciate the suggestions to leave it alone but this was an experiment and I wanted to see what happened with the changes.



Al

[Jim S.]

Hi Al,
That is one very nice piece of art work you have there.
Jim

[AlArchie]

Thanks, Jim. For Tom, thanks, too, and there are at LEAST 362 lighthouses and stations on the great lakes and connecting waters. Far more than I care to carve! hehehe.

Al