I recently completed two new paintings and wanted to share them here.
Saddle Up is about a friend of ours, Pete, who was a Marine in Viet Nam. Pete was in some really vicious battles during his two tours there in 1968 and 69. When I interviewed him as preparation for this painting, he said that he was still fighting some of those battles at night. His wife said he normally sleeps only a few hours. I tried to capture that experience here. Pete was the one who came up with the title. "Saddle up, ladies" was the call to the Marines to head out on patrol.
After the Patrol was done from a sketch I did in Afghanistan. A group of soldiers returned to our base completely worn out from their day conducting a village patrol in 120+ degree heat. These can be nerve-wracking in the best of times because you never know when an IED might go off, or when insurgent fighters might open up. You're a walking target. And this sergeant had been in charge of the patrol.
I feel pretty good about both of these paintings. I think both manage to capture the feelings I was looking for. There are one or two other paintings in the queue right now. Hopefully, it won't be months before they're done!
Saddle Up
Oil on canvas, 50"x40"
©2014 Skip Rohde
Saddle Up is about a friend of ours, Pete, who was a Marine in Viet Nam. Pete was in some really vicious battles during his two tours there in 1968 and 69. When I interviewed him as preparation for this painting, he said that he was still fighting some of those battles at night. His wife said he normally sleeps only a few hours. I tried to capture that experience here. Pete was the one who came up with the title. "Saddle up, ladies" was the call to the Marines to head out on patrol.
After the Patrol
Oil on canvas, 24"x30"
©2014 Skip Rohde
After the Patrol was done from a sketch I did in Afghanistan. A group of soldiers returned to our base completely worn out from their day conducting a village patrol in 120+ degree heat. These can be nerve-wracking in the best of times because you never know when an IED might go off, or when insurgent fighters might open up. You're a walking target. And this sergeant had been in charge of the patrol.
I feel pretty good about both of these paintings. I think both manage to capture the feelings I was looking for. There are one or two other paintings in the queue right now. Hopefully, it won't be months before they're done!
Thank you for sharing your paintings. I check your site regularly, looking forward to the art and your comments.
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