Bringing color to life
Yacht owner purchases plein air painting from local artist
The completed painting is pictured. (Photo courtesy of John French)
Local artist John French creates a plein air painting of a yacht as it is docked at Mattson Lower Harbor Park in Marquette. (Photo courtesy of John French)
The completed painting is pictured. (Photo courtesy of John French)
Local artist John French creates a plein air painting of a yacht as it is docked at Mattson Lower Harbor Park in Marquette. (Photo courtesy of John French)
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MARQUETTE -- Local artist John French returned to the area Monday after a week of painting at a plein air event in Mineral Point, Wisconsin. After running some errands with his wife, the pair decided to take a drive along the lakeshore in Marquette.
"We spotted the yacht, and we went for a walk to get a closer look," he said. "It had such neat swooping lines and beautiful highlights and shadows. I still had my paints and gear in my van, so I decided to paint a quick plein air of the bow."
French said that while he was painting, a handful of staff members stopped to take a look, one or two at a time.
"A couple of hours later, they came back, and really liked it," he said. "One of the staffers took my contact information and followed my Instagram."
Two days later, that same staffer gave French a call -- they wanted to purchase the painting.
"She said they were leaving at 2 p.m. and hoped it wasn’t too late," he said. "I still had the painting in my van, so I drove to (the) lower harbor to deliver it. The owner of the yacht never contacted me himself, but I was told that he saw it and had the staff contact me."
After he arrived, French was taken on a tour of the yacht.
"It was so classical looking inside," he said. "They were all so nice. They paid me a bit more than my asking price. It was a surreal experience."
French is the president of the Lake Superior Art Association, and is represented locally by Wintergreen Hill Gallery, and The Gallery Marquette. His work can be viewed at ArtofJohnFrench.com, or on Instagram and Facebook at Art of John French.