Halloween at The General Warren Inn, 16x20,
oil on linen
Knowing that I'm not fond of painting buildings, a friend of mine recently challenged me to paint a historic haunted house for a little Halloween fun. Having just visited Chester County , Pa. last week, I immediately thought of The General Warren Inn, (especially since I'd already painted the Inn at Yellow Springs, also known as the Washington Building.)
The General Warren Inn is located in the bucolic borough of horse-loving Malvern, Pa. Named after General (and later Admiral ) Peter Warren, this tavern became one of the most controversial taverns in our country's War of Independence. It was here that British Major Andre brought his troops just hours before ordering the massacre of the exhausted Continentals, who happened to be sleeping in tents on the grounds about Warren Ave. (in Malvern). The infamous Paoli Massacre, was planned and launched from The Admiral Warren Inne. Local folklore has it that on the night of September 20, 1777, the British captured the local blacksmith and tortured him on the third floor of the inn. This led to the discovery that General "Mad Anthony" Wayne and his troops were camping nearby.
The soon to follow mass bayonetting of American troops became known as the Paoli Massacre, (Paoli is the next neighboring borough to Malvern and Frazer). The massacre served to inflame the American forces to such a degree that it actually turned the war around, so The General Warren Inn is significant indeed. The grounds are reputedly haunted by Continental soldiers, and the cry "Remember Paoli!" , became the battle cry for independence. The inn was first built in 1745, and burned down and later rebuilt in 1831. Over the last 20-30 years it has undergone extensive renovations, and is a truly lovely inn in which to dine or have a romantic getaway weekend, especially at this time of year!
For more history on The General Warren Inn, please go here
I decided to paint the Inn as it looked back in the 1800's, and this proved to be a challenge since I only had a pencil sketch to go by. The big gorgeous oak tree in the front of the house is long gone, though it was there when I had a very memorable October birthday with 3 other couples quite a few years back. Of the 4 couples, all of us females had our birthdays in October, and the night we went there to celebrate our mutual 30-ish birthdays resulted in us closing the place down, stomachs and ribs racked and aching from laughing to exhaustion. The food and company were divine and I guess that's why I wanted to make this a "fun" piece.
I pushed the color to the max in this one, just because I was being mischevious- after all it's almost Halloween! I know that many Chester Countians are a bit sketchy about using wild color in their decor and prefer the more subtle hues of renowned Chester County artists Andrew Wyeth, Peter Sculthorpe, and Richard Bollinger above their cozy fireplaces. Nonetheless, I went about my merry way, adding the falling leaves and pumpkins, because these were the things that I saw last week (while visiting the area) that reminded me how much I miss that lovely place that's currently brimming with vibrant color!
If you would like to bid on this painting, please go here.
a Painting a day, Daily painters, original art , affordable art, impressionist paintings,Chester County Romantic Getaways, haunted inns and places, colorist art>, historic inns in Pennsylvania>, Paintings of Chester County Pennsylvania.
oil on linen
Knowing that I'm not fond of painting buildings, a friend of mine recently challenged me to paint a historic haunted house for a little Halloween fun. Having just visited Chester County , Pa. last week, I immediately thought of The General Warren Inn, (especially since I'd already painted the Inn at Yellow Springs, also known as the Washington Building.)
The General Warren Inn is located in the bucolic borough of horse-loving Malvern, Pa. Named after General (and later Admiral ) Peter Warren, this tavern became one of the most controversial taverns in our country's War of Independence. It was here that British Major Andre brought his troops just hours before ordering the massacre of the exhausted Continentals, who happened to be sleeping in tents on the grounds about Warren Ave. (in Malvern). The infamous Paoli Massacre, was planned and launched from The Admiral Warren Inne. Local folklore has it that on the night of September 20, 1777, the British captured the local blacksmith and tortured him on the third floor of the inn. This led to the discovery that General "Mad Anthony" Wayne and his troops were camping nearby.
The soon to follow mass bayonetting of American troops became known as the Paoli Massacre, (Paoli is the next neighboring borough to Malvern and Frazer). The massacre served to inflame the American forces to such a degree that it actually turned the war around, so The General Warren Inn is significant indeed. The grounds are reputedly haunted by Continental soldiers, and the cry "Remember Paoli!" , became the battle cry for independence. The inn was first built in 1745, and burned down and later rebuilt in 1831. Over the last 20-30 years it has undergone extensive renovations, and is a truly lovely inn in which to dine or have a romantic getaway weekend, especially at this time of year!
For more history on The General Warren Inn, please go here
I decided to paint the Inn as it looked back in the 1800's, and this proved to be a challenge since I only had a pencil sketch to go by. The big gorgeous oak tree in the front of the house is long gone, though it was there when I had a very memorable October birthday with 3 other couples quite a few years back. Of the 4 couples, all of us females had our birthdays in October, and the night we went there to celebrate our mutual 30-ish birthdays resulted in us closing the place down, stomachs and ribs racked and aching from laughing to exhaustion. The food and company were divine and I guess that's why I wanted to make this a "fun" piece.
I pushed the color to the max in this one, just because I was being mischevious- after all it's almost Halloween! I know that many Chester Countians are a bit sketchy about using wild color in their decor and prefer the more subtle hues of renowned Chester County artists Andrew Wyeth, Peter Sculthorpe, and Richard Bollinger above their cozy fireplaces. Nonetheless, I went about my merry way, adding the falling leaves and pumpkins, because these were the things that I saw last week (while visiting the area) that reminded me how much I miss that lovely place that's currently brimming with vibrant color!
If you would like to bid on this painting, please go here.
a Painting a day, Daily painters, original art , affordable art, impressionist paintings,Chester County Romantic Getaways, haunted inns and places, colorist art>, historic inns in Pennsylvania>, Paintings of Chester County Pennsylvania.
