Smoky mountains. The mist and the fog heavy on the ridges. Feel it, quiet and thick. Breathe in the silence. Shrouded in gray.
Shrouded.
Shroud.
A shadow of death is here, but calm and beautiful, in the distance. No fear.
The trees look on without a word.
This is a sober twilight view of the mountains painted by Betty Jane Posey. She had her own art gallery in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, in the Smoky Mountains. She painted landscapes, barns and flowers in the 1970s to at least the 1990s. It’s easy to see them on the web. Of all the pictures I saw by Posey, this one is the one I like.
I have not found biographical information about her, but Posey was (is?) part of the Great Smoky Arts and Crafts Community. In 1997, she and Kathy Shields Guttman created a book filled with anecdotes and recipes from the people around them, the crafting community. It’s called, Whop Biscuits and Fried Apple Pie.
Untitled
Betty Jane Posey
Gatlinburg, Tennessee
Paint on stretched canvas
12” x 24”
Rumpus Art Panel 