Drowsier Days of Washington, D.C.

Sometimes when I go to flea marts and various collectors' shows, there are pieces of Washington, D.C. ephemera that I cannot resist to buy. As a teen in the 1960s it was not unusual to visit our sleepy neighbor south of Baltimore on weekend nights because the legal drinking age was 18.   In Maryland at that time you had to be 21-years-old to sit and sip beer or wine on a barstool. So off we would go down route 295 for a night of drinking and getting lost on our way home. That was my first "adult" experience with our nation's capital. I never regarded it as a political hot spot in those days.  It was a town where people lived and worked and played despite having their traffic signals mounted on the side of the intersections. Pairing this experience with countless childhood school bus trips to the museums and monuments, I  regarded DC as a town for fun and shopping which was not Baltimore. And that's how I came to name my collage "Drowsier Days of D. C." It's familiar and it's what I know.

"Drowsier Days of D.C." (24" x 36")  mixed media on board 2014

That's the way I had it in my head until about 15-20 years ago when DC shed its heavy-eyed image with $5 parking lots for the wide-awake cosmopolitan scene with clattering construction sites.

The collage was an instant hit with visitors to my art show booth. There are various restaurants and clubs that represent a particular experience in the memories of many Washingtonians. Streetcar rides to Glen Echo, Griffith stadium or downtown hold a dear spot in the hearts of many. And I have also included some tv shows and personalities that we all tuned in to watch. People love to tell me their stories and I am eager to hear them. I sold the original collage recently, but I have poster size prints in my Etsy shop for sale for those who need to see this on their wall.

Roadside Lures

"Lunch, Dinners, Cabins" oil on canvas (30" x 20") 2004

More often than not, the earliest roadside stops were family owned. I imagine these three women in my painting might have been sisters or sisters-in-law. In my mind they spent most of their days and nights together maintaining their overnight cabins and dining room for weary travelers. The lady in the middle of this trio probably was in charge of making the dinners and lunches. She certainly takes pride in her uniform with the matching cap - tilted at a jaunty angle. I like to think that the long, thin redhead was a manager type, eyeing guests and asking them to sign the register. She might be the bossy one. The blond on the end helped with the cleaning and was good-natured about keeping the business humming along. She had a habit of photographing their guests from time to time. She kept these photos with descriptions in a private album hidden in her room.