Switzer’s Licorice, St. Louis
If you read yesterday’s blog, you’ll know that I have toyed with reviving a project I abandoned about a year ago–a series of watercolors titled “My Town 63050.” My inspiration came from Thornton Wilder, Sherwood Anderson, Garrison Keillor and any other brilliant mind who created their own fictitious town and grew wonderful stories about them. I once thought I would do the same with watercolor. Yesterday evening, I began a small watercolor sketch of the old Switzer’s Licorice building on the St. Louis riverfront that has since been demolished. I grew up looking at that lone sentinel of a building sitting north of the gateway arch, above the Mississippi River. I figured it was time to re-do a painting of it. Formerly it had stood in the background of a 1999 watercolor I had titled “Turvey’s Corner.” I look forward to finishing this and matting it to put in my booth next week when I attend Taste of St. Louis art festival.
Thanks for reading.
Tags: Garrison Keillor, Sherwood Anderson, Switzer's Licorice, Thornton Wilder
Recollections 54 The Art of David Tripp 
September 22, 2012 at 9:21 am |
I love your paintings! “My Town 63050” is quite an idea! If it’s work for you it would make a wonderful collection! I love doing “letter-drawings”…old letters with their envelopes (stamp/postmark) adding old things around it, including the pen. Looks like we find satisfaction in bringing the older things “back”. 😉
Wishing you success in St. Louis! BJR
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September 22, 2012 at 9:41 am |
Thank you, Bonnie. I’m delighted that you “connect” with this nostalgic idea. Do you have a website or blog? I would love to see your work.
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September 22, 2012 at 11:18 am |
No, I do not have a website or blog. My husband has been encouraging me to set up an Etsy shop. (With my health restrictions,. a blog looks “too much”…but I think Etsy would be perfect. Going to seriously look into it.) I’ve found a brown black pen…it helps makes the ink sketches look “old”…the perfect look!! I do either ink or ink and watercolor. I draw mostly with pen first…erasing too much with pencil, but if it’s a building, etc. then I use pencil. Art is my “life”…it even helps pain, did you know that? I can get really “into it” and then when I quit it’s like…”Oh…I DO hurt.” I’ve been going “out of my box’ lately, trying to draw people.
My husband says I’ll get there if I keep trying, so…. 😉 BJR
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August 5, 2013 at 10:24 pm |
I found a really old huge pencil switzers licorice it says made in st louis everybody likes switzers. I was wondering what it was and where it came from, and how old it could be
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