I've joined a wonderful group of people, Preserving A Picturesque America, whose goal is to revisit hundreds of sites across America that were documented in the like-titled book of 1857. An artist named Henry Finn set out to draw these noteworthy sites in order to help record and save them for future generations.
Recently the group has hiked to about eight sites, four paint-outs which I was able to make. What fantastic and joyful paint outs we had! This particular scene was right along the Appalachian Trail in Hot Spring, North Carolina. This site is Lover's Leap, and legend has it that there was a star-crossed Indian couple who were told each other had died, so they jumped off the ledge of this rock face. Myth? Who knows, but it makes for a great story.
This original plein air artwork is on archival board and is painted in Michael Harding oils. It is 11 X 14" and is unframed.
Try to imagine horse drawn carriages coming around the bend in that trail - because they did.
