CALLANISH STONES
ACRYLICS ON CEDAR W/RED OAK FRAME
SUMMER 2024

     The stone circle at Stonehenge is without a doubt the most famous and visited of all of the British Neolithic monuments, but it pales in comparison to the majesty and spirituality of the Callanish Stones on the Outer Hebrides island of Lewis.  Over tourism and the protective glass enclosure around Stonehenge have removed the important connection between the past ancestors and people today.  This is not the case with Callanish, as we are able to get up close and personal to the stones: to inspect the details of the fine-grained Lewis gneiss stone, to feel the texture, and perhaps, even to experience the power of the stones.  A cross-like pattern of standing stones with a central stone circle and a long avenue of approach sits atop a rise giving spectacular views of the landscape surrounding the site.  The overall feeling is difficult to express, but one of lasting memory.  Our recent trip to Lewis, and a visit to Callanish, was more than enough inspiration for me to paint the stones as I see them.  This painting is within the scope of my “Landscape of the Mind” series and employs a tarashikomi effect in my representation of the stones.  I made the frame for this painting out of red oak using pegged, hand-joined, mortise-and-tenon construction methods.   I used the Japanese technique (shou-sugi-ban) of charring and oiling the oak to finish the frame.  

DIMENSIONS:          HEIGHT: 11 1/2 inches
                                    WIDTH: 39 inches

                                                                SOLD

Gary Giovane
La Conner, WA
[email protected]