Abandoned Railroad Setting, February 26, 2010

Abandoned Railroad Site

Three days ago, while returning from the gallery, I took an alternative route home, and was stunned to see this abandoned railroad site just east of the historic Handley neighborhood in east Fort Worth.  The afternoon sunlight and emerging shadows reflected a gorgeous yet chilly winter day, and I couldn’t resist pulling the truck over and making some preliminary sketches, then snapping a few shots with my BlackBerry.  I’ve only gotten to make two passes over it, late in the night, the past two nights.  Finally, just after midnight, I decide to go ahead and post it.

I’ve had a fetish for railroad scenes since I was a small boy playing with Lionel trains and going with Mom and Dad to pick up Grandmother at Union Station in St. Louis.  I’ve drifted away from railroad settings in watercolor but hope to get a few more in now.

Thank you for reading.

Advertisement

Tags: Americana, Edward Hopper, field painting, French Impressionism, nostalgia, plein air, Proust, railroad, Remembrance of Things Past, Sherwood Anderson, small town, Texas, train, watercolor