“St. Swithun’s Day” (Upperville, Virginia)
Pencil, pastel, and drybrush
July 15 2024
I finished this today (having begun it yesterday, on St. Swithun’s Day). Of course (and looking at the sky in this painting), this means that the fine folks of Upperville and Fauquier County won’t be getting any rain until at least 25 August…..which is too bad since, however lovely Upperville might be, it’s also hot as fuck up there right now. If you don’t believe me?….just re-acquaint yourself with the legend of St. Swithun.
Upperville is, course, deeply, historically, and irretrievably horsey-country….falling solidly in the category of “If you have to ask, you can’t afford to live here, and that’s IF anyone here is selling to anyone they don’t already know.” Like Hillsborough, it’s basically a very large, self-consciously exclusive (it has to be; Washington, DC is only an hour away) terrarium
It remains, however, beyond beautiful and, actually, charming. I used to go up there regularly to visit, but all of my old friends in Fauquier county have died, so no one invites me up for long house-visits anymore. This is increasingly the case with all of my old haunts & stomping grounds.
Oh, many thanks to Scott Keller (who actually does live in Upperville, with his wife, Belinda, and passel of actively-working horses). He took this photograph and allowed as how I could paint it.
