MRS. TROWBRIDGE'S "SELFIE" PAINTING

Mrs. Trowbridge spent many hours recording the flora and fauna of the rain forest. Occasionally, she would paint a "selfie", where she would include herself in the scene. This is one such painting. Her painting process was slow and laborious because she gave such great attention to detail. But she left a lasting legacy for us of what life was like in the Quinault Rain Forest 200 years ago.

She used various herbs and berries to make her paints. She found the deep blue hue of ripe huckleberries to be ideal for her drawing ink. On this page of her journal, she talks about early morning painting sessions. 

 http://trowbridgechronicles.blogspot.com/2008/04/daybreak-at-falls.html

Have you seen my other blog, Bron Smith's Flights of Fantasy: http://bronsmithart.blogspot.com/

VIOLET TROWBRIDGE'S RHODODENDRON PAINTING

One of my favorite of all of Mrs. Trowbridge's floral paintings that are contained in her journal is this lovely rhododendron painting. She was undeniably the Grand Dame of watercolor in the Quinault Rain Forest. The notes in her Trowbridge Chronicles journal revealed that she spent 93 hours on the above painting.

My Trowbridge shrew research expedition to Polynesia several years ago was most fascinating. We found tiny petroglyphic evidence among the boulders in the forest and along the shoreline of the Trowbridge Shrew's presence on the tiny island of Motu Taakoka in the Cook Island Group (above). We even found bone fragments, including an intact skull. Look for more of Mrs. T's floral paintings in upcoming posts.

Have you seen my other blog, Bron Smith's Flights of Fantasy? 

CAMELLIA FLOWER, by VIOLET TROWBRIDGE

If Shrew Khan was the King of Trowbridge Shrews, Violet Trowbridge was the queen. Her lovely watercolor paintings and hand-scribed journal became legendary throughout the Great Forest, today known as the Quinault Rain Forest. This camellia flower is part of her series of paintings commemorating her ancestors who lived in the Polynesian islands.

Have you seen my other blog, Bron Smith's Flights of Fantasy? 

TROWBRIDGE SHREW ANCESTRY

Mrs. Trowbridge was very intrigued by her ancestors. I, too, have become interested in Mrs.T's ancestral roots, which have been traced back many centuries to the Mongolian Steppes in Northern Asia.

It is thought that the Trowbridge shrew migrated over many centuries of time from Mongolia through the Polynesian islands to South America, then northward to Mrs. T's home in the Olympic wilderness of North America. By the process of carbon dating some pages from Mrs. Trowbridge's journal, we learned that she lived in the Quinault Rain Forest a little more than 200 years ago, about the time that the Lewis and Clark Expedition was taking place.

Inspired by her Polynesian ancestors, and the beautiful flowers that flourished in the South Sea islands, she set out to paint a series of florals depicting flowers that grow in the Polynesian islands. The flower above that she painted so deftly is a tree hibiscus.

The flower on top was hand-scribed, then the flower was rendered in charcoal. Mrs. T made her own charcoal sticks. Click here if you would like to learn how she made her charcoal sticks from Douglas fir needles.

The next post on this blog will be another of Mrs. Trowbridge's lovely flower paintings.

Have you seen my other blog, Bron Smith's Flights of Fantasy?

WOODROW THE ROCK CLIMBER

For those of you who are new to this blog, Violet Trowbridge was a Trowbridge shrew who lived about two centuries ago in the Quinault Rain Forest in Washington State, USA. As a young shrew, her mother taught her the art of calligraphy and watercolor. Using her pen and brush, she recorded life as she saw it through most of her life in the village of Huckleberry Hollow. 

A number of years ago, while hiking up Wild Rose Creek in the Quinault Rain Forest, I found a tiny gold box on a mossy ledge that contained a toad-skin leather cover book, which was titled The Trowbridge Chronicles. I had found a myth-shrouded treasure, which today provides us with a glimpse of life long ago among the small creatures in the rain forest. These journal pages are her story, in her own hand-scribed words. 

Today's story: Woodrow, Violet's husband has taken up rock climbing and has brought his new rock climbing equipment along on their family summer outing in the high meadows. Mrs. Trowbridge has deftly sketched her handsome husband as he enjoys the view from atop a towering five-foot boulder.

Mrs. Trowbridge captures Woodrow in charcoal as he rappels down a boulder. I have spent many days and nights in the high meadows of the Olympic wilderness. I have, in fact, made a number of treks into Wild Rose Creek, where Mrs. T lived with her family. My times in the Olympic Mountains have been among the most special and memorable times of my life. 

Have you seen my other art blog? It's called Bron Smith's Flights of Fantasy.

MOTHER TROWBRIDGE'S GRAVESITE

The fluid nature of Mrs. Trowbridge's watercolor paintings were an ideal media to capture the vivid colors of the Quinault Rain Forest where she once lived. Below is the finished painting that she created to memorialize her departed mother. Mother Trowbridge exerted a great influence on her daughter, Violet. It was Mother Trowbridge who taught Violet how to scribe, and to become accomplished in the art of watercolor.

Don't miss the new movie poster on my new blog. This time The Toad takes on the role of Clint Eastwood in Sergio Leone's classic spaghetti western, The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. The poster and t-shirt is available for sale on the blog.

MOTHER TROWBRIDGE PASSES.

Mrs. Trowbridge loved her mother very dearly. She never completely recovered from the grief of losing her mother. It was Mother Trowbridge who taught her the art of calligraphy, as well as drawing and painting. We are indebted to Mother T. for the journal that her daughter, Violet, left for us to enjoy. It has given us a fascinating record of what life was like over 200 years ago in the Quinault Rain Forest.

Below is Mrs. T's sepia tone value study for her painting of her mother's grave site. The next post will be her full color painting. Check back soon for that.

Take an extra moment and check out my new blog and meet Skagway, a larger-than-life toad who stars in blockbuster movies from yesterday and today. You'll see the first Skagway movie poster where Skagway reprises Mel Gibson's role in Road Warrior in a new film called Toad Warrior. 

Coming up next on Bron Smith's Almost Amazing Blog: a send up of Sergio Leone's classic spaghetti western, The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. Skagway does his own unique rendition of Clint Eastwood in the role of Blondie. I'm still working on the movie poster, but I will be posting it soon.