Old Mill, Now and Then

I painted this afternoon at El Molino Viejo. It was a beautiful day, with the sun ducking in and out of clouds and spring well underway. The painting looks very similar to the one I painted last summer. I chose to paint the same view since I knew it worked. I think I might like the new one even better. It has more color variations and the appearance of depth. I'm very fond of the simple trees in the background. However, my thoughts were on an entirely different picture of El Molino Viejo. This one:


I remembered seeing this photograph on the internet, and I got a huge kick out of it, because there is this woman well over 100 years ago, doing just exactly what I do. I'm betting she didn't go home and blog about it though. In my quest to find the picture again, I also happened to learn who is pictured. The seated woman is Elizabeth Putnam, a Los Angeles painter and art teacher. Looking over her shoulder is Gutzon Borglum, whom Elizabeth married. He was 20 years younger, and she left him in Europe. His best known work, by a long shot, is Mount Rushmore.