The Stories behind the art

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The inspiration behind this painting is Lynn’s long-time love of motorcycle riding and a very active imagination. Rollie Free pictured on the motorcycle below held the land speed motorcycle record for almost 20 years.

In 1948, Rollie recorded 150.3 MPH on the salt flats of Utah. His clothing was stripped off him from previous attempts and this photograph is his record-breaking ride.

Lynn pondered what would it look like if Rollie was Amish? And thus, the painting was born.

Many baby boomers grew up in the ’60s riding a Schwinn Sting-Ray bicycle. The initial bikes came from the factory with “banana seats” and tall "butterfly" type handlebars. The colors were Flamboyant Lime, Red, Radiant Coppertone, Sky Blue, and Violet.

The bike evolved into the Schwinn Krate that had various features such as a gear shifter. The colors and model names were the Apple Krate (Red), The Lemon Peeler (Yellow), and the Orange Krate (Orange). Oh, goodness the fun memories!

Lynn’s bicycle was an orange color. He pondered what if an Amish man could experience the fun that was had on a Schwinn bike and what might that look like?

Lynn is an avid motorcycle rider since a very early age. In 2020, Lynn installed a sidecar on his motorcycle and planned a trip with his wife Michelle across the country. Unfortunately, the pandemic delayed the trip. Bad Puppy was painted as a way to reflect the rich history of motorcycle sidecars and more importantly inspired by the love of ice cream by animals and people alike. Bad Puppy seeing the ice “scream” vendor broke free and flew to get his ice cream treat while the owner was yelling for the puppy to return.

The inspirations and motivations behind Barnyard Ballet were to craft an image of the most unlikely scenario to happen. The goal was to have an image that is whimsical and fun, where people can laugh at, be amused by, and appreciate the painting’s folly. 

Ballet and barnyards do not go together, nor would farmhands ever be practicing their dance moves, especially in the hazards of a barnyard. 

Art is unique and touches people differently. Some may be uncomfortable with this piece; others rejoice in how the piece strikes them. For the artist, success is first achieved in the journey of crafting a piece. Secondly, success is to get an emotion or provoke thought from the observer. 

For those who find an art piece refreshing, that is great. For those few who may be offended by work, we are reminded that offense is never

given, but it is taken and is in our control.

In 1969 the iconic counterculture movie called Easy Rider featured Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper as motorcycle riding hippies who traveled across the United States in search of spiritual truth. 

Motorcycles started as motorized bicycles in the late 1800s and early 1900s have evolved reflecting various lifestyles even to this day.  For this painting, Lynn reached into multiple inspirations: the Captain America bike and its lifestyle; the Harley Davidson culture; and the Schwinn Krate culture that many boomers grew up with. Note the playing card that many of us placed on our spokes for that almost authentic motorcycle sound. 

A part of the painting was inspired by a neighboring Plain family’s four-year-old daughter who regularly carried her favorite pet chicken under her arm. The one-legged rooster represents Dennis Hopper. Imagine what it might look like if Plain people were influenced by the same cultural icons as baby boomers. Certainly, this is not a likely combination, however, that is the fun and the whimsey of imagination.

The Bowden Spacelander bicycle was first shown in 1946. It was well-received with its space-age design looking special in those bleak post-war years.  Beneath the pressed-steel frame was concealed an electric motor which charged when the bike was being ridden downhill or on the level. It then could then lend assistance when the road started going up. The bicycle also had built-in lights, a horn, and a radio. Amazingly, these characteristics are a part of today’s electric bike movement witnessed on the Spacelander 75 years earlier.

Unfortunately for Bowden, the Spacelander didn’t sell well and only 522 were ever made. It was considered to be too exotic and expensive for mass-market appeal. However today, the Spacelander’s design and retro-futuristic looks make it a collectors’ item and on rare occasions when they come up for sale, selling upwards of $5,000.

The Spacelander’s space-age design combined with the ‘30s and ‘40s art deco style movement, Lynn’s childhood memories of scary space movies are  inspirations to make this whimsical painting.

Our family-owned a country property with a log cabin and a nice amount of acreage. Winter has especially fond memories of the family playing in the snow and warm fires inside the 1775 log building home.

The inspiration for this painting has roots with the artist’s children as they learned to snowboard while being pulled behind an ATV. What might winter fun look like if you don’t have an ATV, hills to ski, a snowboard, or even much snow but just an abundance of livestock? Fun, for all and maybe even a cow.

The painting captures the rich history of the Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery in Lititz Pennsylvania. It is the first commercial pretzel bakery in America with the building built-in 1784. The stone house was built from stones dug from the street itself and timber hewn from the surrounding forest.

In the late 1800s, early 1900s engines were being designed and placed on bicycles making motorcycles. As early as 1910, races were being held on large oval wooden tracks and the machines were called board track racers. In 1901 the Indian Motorcycle Company was formed by two bicycle racers. In 1902 Indian built 500 motorcycles. In 1913, Indian produced a peak of 32,000 motorcycles per year.

The motorcycle featured in this painting is the 1913 Indian V-twin engine with an incredible 1000 CC’s. Speeds on the board track were  over 100 MPH. The bikes had no brakes relying on coasting or the riders’ feet to slow them down. Safety gear was non-existent with riding gear as googles and perhaps a leather riding cap.

Racing was cross country as well with races such as the Isle of Man or other flat-out road ridings. This painting whimsically imagines Plain people also evolving from bicycles to motor-driven machines and racing from Lancaster to Intercourse on route 340 and enjoying (or not so much) the biker's speed.

We tend to see and categorize Plain people as serious and only in their work settings; not thinking of the leisure and lighthearted part of their lives. 

In this painting, the Plain modest dress, which easily identifies them as separate from the worldly kingdom, is contrasted with the over-the-top clothing and dress of the professional golf world.  

In highlighting this the painting whimsically imagines what a weekly golf outing might look like for a trio of friends trying to have a foot in each world. In a small town that is not much more than a crossroads and having a name that brings out the snickering fourth grader in each of us, you never know what you might find at the local country club.

The title “Christmas In Paradise” brings flash visions of the Coca Cola Santa Clause, Norman Rockwell style Christmas scenes, and Burl Ives as Frosty The Snowman.

Christmas In Paradise…PA certainly has characteristics of those heart-warming memories sprinkled in with the realities of an agriculture-based life where running a farm is a 365 day a year job.

So, imagine reindeer pulling a sleigh past the pine trees of a full moonlit winter night. Sleighbells clanging, hoofs rhythmically hitting the ground. “You Reeka” the sleigh is actually a manure wagon spreading next growing season nutrients, with a pungent not-eggnog and cookies aroma.

This is a fourth of a study of five paintings focusing on the unusual town names surrounding Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Town names such as Intercourse, Blue Ball, Bird-in-Hand, etc. each have their own fascinating stories.

Death-defying feats have fascinated mankind for centuries. Many a hospital trip followed the words “hey ya’ll watch this”. Robert Craig "Evel" Knievel was an American stunt performer and entertainer. Throughout his career, he attempted more than 75 ramp-to-ramp motorcycle jumps. Evel was influenced by Joie Chitwood Auto Daredevil Show, to become a motorcycle daredevil.

A generation of children grew up transfixed by his televised exploits,

imitating his stunts on bicycles 1960’s, and 1970’s and I was one of them.

​In one of his first jumps for ABC’s Wide World of Sports, Knievel successfully jumped 50 stacked cars.

This painting captures the excitement and imagination of Evel’s exploits in a Plain community farm setting. I wanted to capture the childhood thrill we had on our bicycles imitating Evel but in an over-the-top way. By the way, this painting officially documents the world’s record for the number of cows jumped on a scooter.

The inspiration behind this painting was Elf On A Shelf – the Christmas tradition of how Elves’ hide in people’s homes and report back who is naughty or nice.

The rhyming nature of “Elf On A Shelf” somehow took me to “Cow On A Plow” and a painting concept was born. The painting name almost stayed “Elf On A Shelf” as there was immense joy in seeing people’s faces when they made the connection of seeing the image and the rhyming “Cow On A Plow”.

The painting was challenging as I had to imagine what a cow looks like sitting on a piece of farm equipment. Then to further twist the whimsical and unusual topic and adding to the story, I needed to answer how does the plow move.

Paintings such as these are our own fantasy story and can be whatever we want. So, what if in this fantasy world cows have dominion over humans. What might that look like! Then sprinkle a little over the top of a colorful umbrella and hat because the cow wants the sun protection. If you are going in full crazy whimsical, might as well be neck deep.

In 1970, Grand Funk Railroad produced their Closer To Home album. The iconic song on that album “I’m Your Captain” was their most definitive work summing up a band that greatly influenced us “chronically gifted” adults growing up in that era.

The lyrics "I'm getting closer to my home” sums up the troubles and excitement of travel but also the great feeling of coming home again. In this painting, the young man with his travel companion dog is finishing a journey of towns as indicated by the travel stickers on his suitcase. The reality of his travel stickers is that he did not travel more than 10 or so miles away but such a great trip for someone so young.

The Strasburg Railroad was founded in 1832 is America’s oldest continuously operating railroad. The painting's whimsey notes actual vintage rules for riding the railroad and a very lighthearted reflection of some of the region's uniquely named towns. The railcar represented is car 65. The clock is an image of the clock in the main boarding area.

A very common scene in areas populated by Anabaptists is that of a common black buggy traveling along the road. This painting reflects the plain people and their lifestyle. However, it also has a few twists. Common with many “English” are the stick figures on the back of their car depicting something unique in their life. This stick figure represents the toil of physical labor common in their life. Secondly,

common are yellow “How Am I Driving” stickers on commercial vehicles. With this driving sticker, we are asked how the driving is but with a reminder that the Bible does not want us to judge.

This painting does not have a driver because the horse knows the way home.

With townships like East and West Hempfield, it’s no surprise hemp has played a very important part in Pennsylvania’s agricultural history.

When the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania was founded by William Penn in 1681, it was destined to be a major producer of hemp. In 1683, the Commonwealth an act to legally compel every farmer to grow hemp. This law also helped promote the growth of commerce by allowing hemp fiber to be used as currency.

Fast forward to 1978 when the movie “Up In Smoke” was created. It was a counterculture story about two guys looking to score pot so they can get high and play music. This was Cheech and Chong’s greatest

comedy hit and has been called the first of the stoner movies. It took marijuana culture to a broader audience. A key part of that movie was the iconic song "Low Rider" written by the American funk band “War”. It appeared on their album “Why Can't We Be Friends?" The album cover is the paintings moon face.

The lyric takes the cool, laidback image of the low rider — the Chicano culture practice of hydraulically hot-rodding classic cars — and using innuendo, extends the image to a lifestyle with ties to marijuana usage.

This painting highlights the centuries old business of growing hemp as a cash crop while whimsically imagining what it might look like if Anabaptist hemp farmers were influenced by Cheech and Chong’s

stoner lifestyle.

During a recent trip on the back roads between Quarryville and Strasburg, PA, I saw an Amish man going exceptionally fast on a kick scooter. I realized that he had an electric powered scooter which had him traveling about 50 MPH.

Research pointed toward the motors for these being locally built in Intercourse. The manufacturer has unfortunately discontinued production. However, several stories from Amish about riding them was shared with me by men and women alike and the fact that no safety gear at all is worn while riding at the exceptional speeds.

The field corn was starting to turn in the early fall months and the area was desolate inspiring the alien cow abduction warning sign and hidden alien in the corn field. The alien just adds another level of whimsy to this fun image.

This painting (called Hockersville) recognizes the Hocker family and its presence in the Lancaster and Dauphin Counties in Pennsylvania since the early 1700’s. 

Hockersville painting is a whimsical and imaginative snapshot of a single day of the Hocker family during its first annual reunion on September 7th, 1911. Over 200 local family members attended, most from around Penbrook (Eastern Harrisburg), PA. 

Hockersville town is named in honor of Martin Hocker whose house is a brownstone at the southeast corner of Hockersville and governor roads built 1806 by Martin Hocker (1768-1862). 

The center image of the painting is a 1909 Ford Model T delivery truck for the Butter Bretzel Baking Company owned by David Elmer (D.E.) Hocker (born 1881). Bretzel is the German name for pretzel.

The truck driver, reportedly Alfred E. Hocker, had the flat tire in route and never delivered the beloved bretzels to the reunion. This shame caused him to change his last name to Newman and he never worried about it again.

Before automobiles were practical, America relied on horse-drawn vehicles to deliver milk, ice and produce to home. Horses were well suited to the frequent stops and starts along a route. Horse-drawn vehicles are still in use today because many Amish believe that the use of motorized vehicles would usher in worldliness and ultimately destroy the purity of their simple way of life.

I wanted to paint an urban theme highlighting vintage homes – but with whimsical style.  We typically assume Amish hold rural, agricultural jobs – but this is just not a true impression.  The idea of an Amish pizza delivery collides things that we would not necessarily put together and makes for an image that upon thought – well why not!

When pondering the painting's concept, my mind easily wandered to what an Amish pizza might look like using their traditional foods.

As Al Yankovic might have sung, “don’t be vain, don’t be whiny, or have it delivered in something shiny!"