The Story Behind the Famous Christinas World

The Story Behind the Famous Christinas World Take a wrong turn by the prison in Thomaston, Maine, and youll bump down a pebble road and land smack inside a painting. Or so it seems. Hathorn Point in South Cushing, Maine In the remote town of South Cushing in Maine, a stark, weather-beaten farmhouse sits on the east side of Hathorn Point Road, on a grassy rise overlooking the St. George River and the distant sea. In summer the grass might be a close-cut emerald green and a row of pines fringes the horizon, but all the other details are shockingly familiar. This is the scene from Andrew Wyeths haunting 1948 painting Christinas World. Stepping from a car, or from one of several tour busses that lumbers down the narrow road, one might half expected to see the crippled young Christina Olson, in a pale pink dress, crawling through the grass. The landscape is so well-known. The Olson Home was built by  Captain Samuel Hathorn II in the 1700s, which makes it a genuine Colonial style - a home built during the colonial period in American history. The Hathorns, a seafaring family from Salem, Massachusetts, originally built a log cabin on the property before the Captain upscaled to a framed construction. In 1871, Captain Samuel Hathorn IV replaced the old hip roof with a pitched roof and added several bedrooms on the third floor. A half century later, his descendants, the Olsons, invited the young Andrew Wyeth to use one of the upstairs rooms as a part-time studio. I just couldnt stay away from there, the Pennsylvania-born Wyeth once remarked. It was Maine. When entering the house in late spring, a visitor may be followed by the sweet scent of lilac from the bushes planted outside. Inside the rooms seem bare - the beds and chairs have been removed and even the wood stoves that supplied the only source of heat are gone. Visiting hours are limited to roughly four months of Maines most temperate climate - similar to the last quarter of the 19th century when rooms were rented only in the summer months. Wyeth used his upstairs studio for 30 years and featured the house in many paintings and lithographs.The artist captured stark rooms, austere mantels, and somber rooftop views. Only an easel marks the spot where Wyeth worked at the Olson house. No Small Worlds In the 1890s, John Olson married Katie Hathorn and took over the farm and summer house. Two of their children, Christina and Alvaro, lived all their lives in what is now called the Olson House. A young Andrew Wyeth, who had summered in Maine as a boy, was introduced to the Olsons by Betsy, a local girl who would become Andrews wife. Wyeth sketched both Alvara and Christina   while in Maine, but its the 1948 painting that people remember. Some say that old houses take on the personalities of their owners, but Wyeth knew something more. In the portraits of that house, the windows are eyes or pieces of the soul, almost, he said years later. To me, each window is a different part of Christinas life. Neighbors claim that the crippled Christina had no idea that her small world had become so famous. No doubt, the appeal of Wyeths iconic painting is the visualization of a universal desire - to seek a place called home. The world of ones home is never small. For decades after Christinas death, the house changed hands several times. For awhile there was nervous speculation that it would become yet another New England bed and breakfast inn. One owner, movie mogul Joseph Levine, brought in Hollywood set builders to authenticate the place by spraying its rooms with fake cobwebs and weathering the faà §ade so it resembled the building Wyeth painted. Finally, the house sold to John Sculley, former CEO of Apple Computer Inc., and Lee Adams Sculley. In 1991 they gave it to the Farnsworth Art Museum in nearby Rockland. The house is now protected by being named a National Historic Landmark. During the spring, summer, and fall you can tour the humble farmhouse and grounds that haunted the famous American painter. Stop at the Farnsworth Art Museum in Rockland, Maine for a map and you wont even have to get lost to discover Wyeths world. Key Points - Why the Olson House Is Preserved The Olson House has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1995. The property is significant not for its architecture but for its association with the events and people who have contributed to our cultural history - American artist Andrew Wyeth  (1917-2009) and his paintings. The property has been a National Historic Landmark since 2011.From 1939 to 1968 Andrew Wyeth was inspired to draw and paint the house, objects related to its occupants, and the occupants themselves - the polio-crippled Christina Olson (1893-1968) and her brother, Alvaro Olson (1894-1967). The Olson were the children of John Olson and Kate Hathorn, whose great-grandfather built the house in Maine.Over 300 works by Wyeth are attributed to being associated with the Olson house, including Oil Lamp, 1945; Christina Olson, 1947; Seed Corn, 1948; Christinas World, 1948; Egg Scale, 1950; Hay Ledge, 1957; Geraniums, 1960; Wood Stove, 1962; Weather Side, 1965; and End of Olsons, 1969.The Farnsworth Mus eum continues to restore and preserve the Olson House with period appropriate architectural salvage and reclaimed lumber. Remilled old growth white pine beams and rafters from a 19th century Boston structure were used to restore the Olson homes exterior. Andrew Wyeth is buried in nearby Hawthorn Cemetery, along with Christina and Alvaro Olson and other Hawthorns and Olsons. Sources Olson House, Farnsworth Museum, https://www.farnsworthmuseum.org/visit/historic-sites/olsen-house/ [accessed February 18, 2018]National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, NPS Form 10-900 (Oct. 1990), prepared by Kirk F. Mohney, Architectural Historian, Maine Historic Preservation Commission, July 1993Christina’s World, Longleaf Lumber, https://www.longleaflumber.com/christinas-world/ [accessed February 18, 2018]Historic Restoration, The Penobscot Company, Inc., thepencogc.com/historic_restoration.html [accessed February 18, 2018]Additional photo of Olson House, btwashburn via flickr.com Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)

Photo-Montage

Tips for Creating a Better Script for Video/Photo-Montage Although I am a writer, I am also a Voice Talent for webmercials, e-learning, and audiobooks. This week, I have been hired for a real-estate agencys web video, and find myself in a common situation: The person creating the script is not familiar with writing for this medium. Hence, I created a how-to, useful whether you are creating a video-trailer for your book or writing for a corporate website! * TIME (step one) Watchable time is 3 minutes, and most quick web pieces are less. Three two-minute pieces are better than one 6 minute piece; most people click away at 1.5 minutes. 200 words is around 1.5 minutes, so aim for 200-350 words. With that in mind, write down EVERYTHING that you think is important. Read aloud at a medium pace, and time it. Your written piece is probably five minutes. Now prioritize what you think is important, and write those concepts down in bullet form. Note if you like a certain tone (Cheery? Mellow? Dramatic? Authoritarian? Snarky?). * IMAGES (step two) Ask yourself: ==Do I have images for each of my bulleted ideas? Make a note next to your bullets of how many images you have for each and what they look like. Yes, you can write an image into more than one category- although you will not SHOW the image twice, writing it in two places gives you placement options. If there are ideas WITH NO IMAGES, then you need to get some OR decide to use written text (like â€Å"Comes in red as well†) OR save that idea for a later project. ==Do I have enough images for a whole sentence? This is a biggie. Watchable time for each image is 2-3 seconds. Lovely long compound sentences do not work, nor do sentences where the main object or verb is at the end of the sentence - people need to hear information that explains, modifies, colors what they are seeing. ==Which images are strong and should be first? I know it seems bass- ackwards to think about how it looks rather than what you want to say, but this is a visual medium first and foremost - your message is embedded in the images, not the other way around. ==What if I am having a video/photo professional create my images or use my existing images to decide which goes where? Highly recommended. HOWEVER, you should still have a notion of what KIND of images best show your idea and what kind of image might be a most-compelling initial visual! * SEQUENCE (step three) Start and end with the strongest images. Which ideas do they match on your bullet sheet? You may have to do some realigning of ideas and images, and that is okay. The strongest image/concept-clump is now first. What should come next? The second section is often a lesser point. In general, organize your sequence with main points separated * SCRIPT! (step four) Remember- SHORT AND SWEET. How can you talk about your ideas beautifully, dynamically and succinctly? Remember, each slide will only be 2 or 3 seconds and that your total time is 1.5 to 2.5 minutes. Now touch base with your visual artist (if you have one). As an expert in the visuals, s/he will tweak your concept to give the piece have your tone and tell an interesting story. * REVISIT/REVISE (final step) Your video-photo person will send you the piece for alterations. Send back your thoughts with any script changes, then wait for the final awesome project!!