A 60th Anniversary: Roosevelt Campobello International Park
Visit me to see some of my paintings of the Park!
This year, the Roosevelt Campobello International Park celebrates it 60th anniversary. The Park has scheduled an entire week (July 22-28) of festivities with celebrities in attendance to mark the achievement. In keeping with this celebration, I'm opening my studio by appointment this week so you can see (and perhaps purchase) some of the paintings I've made in nearly 25 years of exploring the park.
Founded in 1964 and administered jointly by the US and Canadian governments, the Park was established to keep alive the memory of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Roosevelt's "cottage," made famous by the play and subsequent movie, "Sunrise at Campobello," is the jewel of the park. But you may not know that the Park is home to several other cottages besides FDR's. A few years ago, I spent a summer painting views of these remarkable cottages. I'm sharing some of these images in this post.
Campobello, back at the end of the 19th century and in the very early 20th century, was a summer resort for wealthy Bostonians, New Yorkers and others of that ilk. They arrived by train to Eastport, Maine, and then travelled by boat a couple of miles across Passamaquoddy Bay to reach this Canadian island. Besides spending summers sitting on the verandah with drinks or plying the waters of the bay in sailboats, they also wandered the surrounding landscape. Today, nearly 3000 acres of ocean cliffs, cobble beaches, spruce woods and glacial bogs are conserved by the Park and are accessible by gravel roads and trails. As many of you know, when I'm on the island, I spend most of my painting time in this landscape. I'm sharing a couple of recent paintings here, as well.
If you're in the area and would like to see the paintings, email me at michael@mchesleyjohnson.com or call 505-490-6139 and leave a detailed message as to when you'd like to visit.
By the way, ten years ago, for the Park's 50th anniversary, I painted a series of 50 paintings to celebrate. I sold all the paintings, but you can see them in the book, Fifty Paintings: Roosevelt-Campobello International Park: Celebrating the Park's 50th Anniversary.
Besides these paintings, I have many, many, MANY more for sale!