Artists-In-Residence Share Their Talents

Beyond the bucolic surroundings and past the portico has been hiding a well-kept artistic surprise that, thanks to Dick Meehan, has now been revealed.

Meehan, 81, a five-year resident of The Evergreens on Bridgeboro Road, has unveiled a  booklet entitled, “Focus on the Arts at The Evergreens,” which chronicles the striking and stunning works in 350 photographs of artists-in-residence of the facility. The collection is the upshot of fieldwork Meehan arranged, after recognizing that many of the folks living at The Evergreens were accomplished artists.

What reverberates while viewing the many collected works is the awe-inspiring knowledge that most of the artists were born in the days when gas cost 10 cents. The 37 artists, most between ages 80 and 100, detail their long-lived lives and their artistic aptitudes in biographies.

When he began the retrospective, Meehan, a retired partner from PriceWaterhouseCoopers, discovered most of the residents began their hobbies after retirement.

“Many attended formal classes in their chosen hobby earning college degrees,” says Meehan, who is married to Marianne and the father of three sons. He is also a member of the board of trustees and a resident ambassador of The Evergreens. “Most of the artists found their activity to be relaxing and therapeutic.”

Chuck Perry, 94, graduated from Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta with an electrical engineering degree. He worked for the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) in Camden until entering the army during the Second World War, spending five years in Europe with the allied forces. After leaving the army, he moved to California, where he worked as a vice president of guided missiles for Boeing Aircraft.

Needing another outlet and “tired of the politics” of corporations, Perry retired at age 61 and went back to college.

“After I retired, I studied art at California State University because I always liked to work with my hands,” says the twice-married Perry, who graduated Phi Beta Kappa, with two degrees in the fine arts: painting and sculpture.

Many of Perry’s paintings are vivid portraitures of coy women with mysterious expressions of wonder. His sculptures are intensely defined human busts; the one of himself is an uncanny resemblance. Most of his works were done up until five years ago, when he had to discontinue his hobby because of stiff legs.

“A good artist needs to step back sometimes and look at their work,” says Perry, who has lived at The Evergreens for 16 years. “I can’t do that anymore.”

After graduating from the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in Manhattan with a fine arts and fashion degree, Giovanna Wenderhorst set up window displays for H.E. Brown and Company, which had upscale stores in Garden City, N.Y. Wenderhorst, an octogenarian, started the chicken-wire sculpture props, used as backdrops with fashionably-dressed mannequins.

While raising her two kids, Wenderhorst did drawings and sketches for the Sunday New York Times and Newsday, but it’s her action-oriented paintings of ballet dancers that are most dramatic and dazzling.

Allergic to the linseed oil, a common particle of oil paint, Wenderhorst works with watercolors.

“I have to feel what I paint,” explains Wenderhorst.

Years before, she would assume the awkward positions of the ballerinas so she could play up on canvas the graphic shapes of the dancers. Among her other unique works is her painting series on the four natural elements—air, fire, water and earth—which have faces obscurely drawn within each composition.

“I find myself moving into different expressions during different periods of my life,” says Wenderhorst, a widow, who moved to Moorestown in 1994.

Centenarian Stuart Younkin began woodworking by assembling furniture after duplicating reproductions from Bartley Classic Reproductions catalogs.

“He still works in the woodworking room every morning,” says Meehan.

The spirited fellow has crafted more than 50 jewelry boxes, candle stands and tilt-top tables, using mahogany, cherry, maple and Spanish cedar woods.

“Focus on the Arts at The Evergreens” isn’t Meehan’s first book. A Korean War veteran, in 2007 Meehan learned there were 67 other veterans in-residence at The Evergreens and authored the booklet, “Veterans Briefs,” summarizing the veterans’ emotions and experiences that come with serving in the military.

Scotland Festival to offer memorabilia

The annual Scotland Festival is set for Sept. 17, and organizers are looking for a form of memorabilia to offer residents, current and former, as well as visitors.

Scotland Festival organizers chose local artist Wyatt LeGrand to paint a portrait of the nationally recognized Scotland Hotel, Scotland Historical Society member Jami Corbin said.

"We chose him (LeGrand) because he is a very good artist, he is local and he is very interested in helping out non-profits (organizations)," Corbin explained, noting LeGrand also did paintings for ornaments for the Greene County CASA the last two years.

LeGrand, owner of LeGrand Art Studio and Gallery in Bloomfield and current Linton-Stockton High School Art teacher, created an oil painting of the Scotland Hotel.

Shades of blue vary against the portrayed light of the sun against the side of the old hotel. Bright whites show the outlines of windows, doors, gutters and a picket fence. Varying bright to dark greens depict the grass surrounding the base of the picket fence.

He created the oil painting on canvas, originally 16 inches by 20 inches, then sent a digital copy of the painting to the historical society, to have it mass produced as a souvenir Christmas tree ornament to be sold at the festival. The portrait is surrounded by the blue of the ornament with the words "Scotland Hotel. Established 1870's" above and below.

The hotel itself is a nationally recognized historical landmark, placing the small town in Taylor Township on the map.

"The hotel is featured on the National Registry of Historic Places," Corbin explained.

Corbin said the ornaments will be available at the souvenir stand, across from the post office. They will be $12 each.

"I already have a lady from the Historical Society that wants four (ornaments) -- one for her and three for her children," Corbin said.

Corbin encourages buying the souvenirs for current residents, former residents and former school attendees. She noted the last graduating class from Scotland was in 1955.

If the portrait of the hotel on the souvenir sells well at this year's festival, Corbin said she would like to have other buildings featured on souvenirs.

Top 10 Oil Paintings for the Summer

In the heat of summer, one might be enjoying the beach, the poolside parties, and the summer cocktails infused with exotic fruits. Has anyone thought for a moment to consider a change in their interior design? Perhaps an update to the walls in the home can brighten one's day. Cheapoilpainting.com provides affordable art reproductions to everyone.

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With that in mind, Cheapoilpainting.com has put together a list of their top 10 favorite paintings for the summer.

1.    Paul Gauguin, Tahitian Landscape (circa 1893). Almost everyone knows the story behind Gauguin, and the mystique and allure of the summer paradise only adds to the oil painting's standing. After all, who doesn't have the summer fantasy of escaping a dreary existence and lazing on an island paradise? This oil painting is perfect for the beach house - or for eliciting getaway fantasies in your suburban office.
2.    Claude Monet, The Poppy Field (1873). This painting is one of a series hailed as the best Monet paintings, recreating the French summer to such sweltering effects that the poppies seemingly shimmer on the canvas - watch out, it could be hot to touch.
3.    Winslow Homer, A Summer Night (1890). Many critics consider this oil painting to be the perfect synthesis of Realism and Symbolism - an exquisite piece conveying the sense of summer mystery and poetry.
4.    Alfred Sisley, The Loing at Moret in Summer (1891). This Impressionist landscape classic features clear blue skies and the brilliant reflections of light on a slowly meandering river - you can almost feel the summer love in the air. A perfect addition to the vacation home by the river.
5.    David Hockney, A Bigger Splash (1967). This painting represents a break in the old and the ushering of the modern, at least in terms of houses and swimming pools. With pool parties steadily increasing in popularity, everyone knows the impact of that splash. No artist has captured that pivotal moment more astutely than this Hockney oil painting.
6.    Jean-Baptiste-Simeon Chardin, Basket With Wild Strawberries (1761). Anyone who has ever picked their own wild strawberries knows the heavenly reward for the hard work; added to the heap of strawberries is a smooth round peach and traffic-light bright cherries. A glass of water cools off the summer intensity. An ideal still life for that sweltering day.
7.    Isaac Levitan, Summer Evening (1899). The Russian artist beautifully captures the rural mood of a parched and sparse country landscape. The heat, combined with the loneliness, perfectly portrays the summer-soaked evening light in the country. It's no wonder he was a favorite artist and close friend of Chekhov.
8.    Bridget Riley, To a Summer's Day (1980). What makes this painting so special is its simplicity - summer hues are interweaved across the horizontal canvas, simultaneously creating impressions of the sky, ground, ocean or whatever landscape your mind's eye develops. Perfect for any location to recreate the mirage and ripples of high summer temperatures.
9.    Fred Williams, Beachscape with bathers Queenscliff IV (1971). This oil painting is a clear indication of why many consider him Australia's greatest modern painter, and why beaches will forever be treasured as an integral part of summer. Williams captures the beachscape effortlessly and with precision, reminding everyone of summers spent frolicking in the sand and surf.
10.    Pierre-Auguste Renoir, The Luncheon of the Boating Party (1880-81). This oil painting remains one of Renoir's best known and most popular work of art. Why? It flawlessly captures the idyllic and jovial summer atmosphere as friends share conversation, food and wine on a balcony overlooking the Seine. It summarizes the most important thing about the season: spending time with loved ones and enjoying the simple things in life.

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