the house that used to be pink

For many years our old former farmhouse was a sort of dusty rose shade of pink. I had finished painting it gray to match the siding on the new addition in the back just in time for the fire. Maybe it was meant to be pink, I don't know. A couple of random strangers actually told me they wished we had left it pink because they used it as a landmark when they gave directions. It definitely was a rather unique color.

Anyway, I'm very sad to say that part of our house is gone now. It was around 130 years old and I still miss it. We keep our old house in mind constantly as we work on the new version of it - sort of in an attempt to have the spirit of the old house move over into the addition which has become our new house. That sounds weird, but that's how it is.

Last week a person who lives in my area saw an earlier post I'd made and he then saw a picture of my house and realized that he had a painting of the old pink version of it hanging in his house! His brother, an artist who works in New York and Charlottesville, had painted a picture of our house, unbeknownst to me, way back in 1992 when he was still a student. He had just returned from studying in Arles and the painting reflects that influence a bit. And he has really captured the feeling of an earlier time. I am so happy that this painting exists and I'm very excited about the prospect of being able to see it in person sometime soon.

The Pink House, by Peter Krebs

I guess this is an example of one of those amazing random connections that occasionally happen in the world of blogging. And now Peter Krebs, the other painter of my house, has written a wonderful piece on his blog about his experiences growing up in this area and why he decided to do this painting. It's a beautiful story and beautifully written as well, so please go read it. It will warm your heart.