Thursday, January 17, 2008

Combination of Art and History... Fort Fisher, NC

"Shepherd's Battery" ~ Fort Fisher by Bernie Rosage Jr... 9x12" Oil on gallery wrapped stretched canvas, painted en plein aire at Fort Fisher, North Carolina. 1-12-2008

This original oil painting by Bernie Rosage Jr. is available for purchase via auction at eBay... click HERE...



Saturday, January 12, 2008, I had the privilege of stepping back in time and attending the 143rd Anniversary Commemoration of the Second Battle at Fort Fisher. The Civil War Living History program included artillery and infantry demonstrations, period music, fort tours, and a living history/plein air demo by yours truly dressed as a period artist. After a down pour the sun came out and I set up my French easel and began to paint. I positioned myself to paint Shepherd's Battery with the palisade making for an interesting composition. Shepherd's Battery was where the main brunt of the attack occurred 143 years ago. Fort Fisher during the war was known as the Gibraltar of the South. It was important to the southern cause because it protected the mouth of the Cape Fear River where blockade runners would travel to deliver supplies to Wilmington. From Wilmington they were distributed throughout the Confederacy. When the fort fell January 15, 1865... it only took 3 months for the Confederacy to collapse. I spoke with several people about the history of plein air painting and how the invention of the metal paint tube in the mid 1800's made it possible for painters to go outside and paint "en plein aire" for the first time... a French term which means "in open air". What a GREAT day!... I got to combine my love of history and art!


Read my art journal entry about this outing here...

2 comments:

Lori McNamara said...

Cool story I clicked your link. Sounds like a fun day, you look very dapper. Nice painting too.

bj said...

You'd make an excellent addition to the Battle of Tunnel Hill (GA) in September. Very dapper, indeed.