Monday, July 10, 2006

Illustration Friday - "Skyline on the Farm"


(Drawn with Micron pen and Prismacolor markers on Koh-I-Noor vellum. For my whole blog, click here)

This skyline is precious to me! I grew up in the South, but spent many summers growing up at my grandparents' farm in Michigan. They have a 200-acre farm that has been in my Grandpa's family for about 125 years now. Gramma and Grandpa got married and built this farmhouse over 60 years ago, next to the barns and big farmhouse where his parents lived. When I was little, Grandpa worked at the truck factory in town, but he and Gramma still farmed all the land, with wheat and soybeans. They also had a big garden that we all worked in. My mom's old horse was in the pasture across the road, but that was all. When my Mom was little, they had dairy cows in the barn, and chickens too. My Mom remembers when there was an outhouse at the end of the little cement path in the yard, and when the section of the house (on right above) with the bathroom and 2 bedrooms was built on. My Grandpa grew up here, and dropped out of school at 13 to take over running the farm when my Great-Grandpa had a stroke (heart-attack?). My great-grandparents bought one of the earliest cars, but my Grandpa was the one to learn to drive it and he was quite the catch in their little town! My 90 year old Gramma (see June 2006 post "Portrait") still lives there by herself.

10 comments:

Fernanda Guedes said...

What a lovely farm! Love the depth of the grass merging with the horizon!

claudine hellmuth said...

I love your rendering. beautiful!

valerie walsh said...

What a beautiful and meaningful post! I love your drawing, you did a beautiful job and this story is wonderful! You are so lucky to have such amazing grandparents and parents and what seems an amazing childhood! I read recently that children that grow up on farms or visit them regularly in childhood live longer as adults!

° said...

wow lov ur story reminds me of my cousins farm we always visited in the summer every weekend. lots of good times. wonderful illo to match ur story.

HARDWAX said...

Wow, I love this piece; the great picture you did of the farm, the photos and the absorbing history of this place. Beautiful!

Anastasia said...

What an amazing story!!! How wonderful to have been able to enjoy the country life during your Summer vacations - what joy for a young child!!!
Great drawing - wonderful photos!

Unknown said...

this reminds me of home. i grew up on a farm! lovely!

Majeak Ann said...

very nice..view!! so calm...so pretty.

Marjorie Ann

carla said...

This is such a beautiful tribute to a beautiful place. I love the history you shared with us...it is so special to have roots like this.

Amy Zaleski said...

How nice you found another way to honor your grandparents. I grew up in the south as well, and my grandparents had a farm that was fully functional when I was a child. What great memories and such a precious experience. Where in the south did you grow up?