Portrait of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Poet
Oil on Canvas, Detail of larger portrait portrait
American Poet 1807 – 1882.
A man of great ferocious tempo and histories. Still one of the most popular of our poets: Hiawatha, The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere, etc.
Henry Longfellow lived almost fifty years of his life while Queen Victoria ruled Britain from 1837 – 1901. There may have been some concentrated American effort to stand apart by lauding our pioneers and savage North America, and it sure wasn’t thwarted by being politically correct. Imagine while high tea was being mimicked on Park Avenue, this famous yankee poet had the courage to come up with the swashbuckling but doomed fantasy (loosely based on history c.1400) that started on the shores of Gitche Gumee, progressed to Daughter of the Moon Nokomis and right up and into the shining Big Sea Water! It was an instant & roaring success. Enough feathers were ruffled to make parodies galore, but it’s 125 years later and I’m not the only one who still remembers Longfellow’s words and wants a feather in my braid. The story teller poets were marvelous conjurers, Longfellow one of the best.
I met Nokomis when I was about seven years old and longed to make that birch bark canoe, moonlight, and woody adventureland my own. And Longfellow’s incredible epic of courage, mysticism, language, wildlife, and natives on these shores remain about one of the greatest tributes to Indian nations ever composed by anybody.
Now also available on RedBubble T Shirts! Full selection of color, great shirts.
Email: hawk@hawksperch.com
for details and price on the original oil painting.
Website: THE HAWKS PERCH, www.hawksperch
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Louise Cooke
Love that far, far away gaze …he looks a million miles away, deep in his own world. Such a compelling piece, beautifully done :)
Helene Kippert
Brilliant work!
Barbara Sparhawk
Thanks Louise, you’re very encouraging.
Barbara Sparhawk
Thanks Helene.
Wonderful to see the new photographs you’ve posted.
Vansk
love the tones here, and yes – those eyes….
Barbara Sparhawk
Thanks Vansk.
Your photographs are very stirring.
alistair mcbride
Beautifuly done portrait Barbara.
Barbara Sparhawk
Thank you Alistair, I really appreciate the bubblers looking at my paintings and drawings. It’s pretty overwhelming to have this kind of feedback, very moving for me.
mlgkats
very well painted, very talented
Barbara Sparhawk
Very kind of you, mlqkats. I’ve always liked portrait painting. I can’t say it’s all pleasure, because the struggle is always on to get proportion and color right. Sometimes it all flows, but not every time. I discovered long ago however that with all creative work, you have to be able to stand it if it gets in an ugly stage, then push past that to make something wonderful. If you don’t risk experimenting, don’t push yourself into frustration and past that, you end up with commonplace work. Which, by the way, there’s very little of here. I think we all push.
ktowers
lovely work!!
Barbara Sparhawk
Thank you so much, K Towers.
pappy
AWESOME, GREAT COLOR GREAT HAND STROKE VARY NICE WORK
Barbara Sparhawk
Very nice of you to say this.
ApeArt
fantastic
Barbara Sparhawk
Thank you so much, ApeArt. It was a pleasure to paint the poet.
I love your site, by the way. Incredibly lively, images I couldn’t have imagined with all those beautiful animals. I usually only say this to myself, but may I add: Oh what a life you lead!
Craig Hender
Awesome work, I love the eyes. Just superb.
Barbara Sparhawk
Thank you so much, Craig. RebBubble is a constant surprise. Particular works are liked, others ignored, and although it’s an eclectic crowd, it’s a discerning one. I greatly appreciate hearing what strikes people and why. The encouragement is phenomenal.
LocoCow
Such an Introspective look into one of the greatest poetic minds….
Barbara Sparhawk
Thank you. I kept looking at the black & white copy of his photograph. The photographer tried to make his pose most ordinary and social, as if he were at a tea, which appalled me. And I kept getting that he was made of more violent, turbulent stuff, a personality roaring with feeling for mankind.
PennyEdwardes
Another incredible artwork Barbara! Those smokey eyes….the flowing white hair and beard….all come together to make this a truly brilliant work of art! Well done again!
Barbara Sparhawk replied
Ah, Penny. Thank you so much for your heartwarming comments.
Julie Marks
Extraordinary artwork. You captured the essence of the complex character of one of the most brilliant minds of our time. This is outstanding and deeply rendered portrait reflecting the thoughtful, serious and gentle temperament of this poetic genius. You are exceptionally gifted and I look forward to seeing more of your amazing work.
Barbara Sparhawk
Wow, Julie, thank you so very much for what you’ve said. I’ve wanted for years to do portraits of men and women whose work meant something to me, done some, not enough, and I’m finally at it again filling in the gaps. More on the way, virtually as we speak.
EnVee
wonderful piece! i love the attention you paid to his hair/beard/mustache and that look in the eyes :)