Bobby’s Dream, showcases the great Bobby Jones swinging away in an old abandoned field that was once the Fruitland Nurseries. Slowly the painting fades from unkempt sandy soil into the lush green oasis of what is now the number one fairway at the Augusta National. The beautiful Mackenzie bunkers and green are framed by magnificent pine trees and a beautiful Augusta sky.
What drove me to start this painting was the aspect of showcasing what Bobby Jones must have seen while standing on the undeveloped canvas that would shortly become his masterpiece. The course, both immaculate and legendary, would not have come to fruition had it not been for “Bobby’s Dream.”
Number 16 (Redbud) is one of my favorite holes at the Augusta National! I spent most of my first Masters Tournament sitting almost in the sand trap guarding the back of the green… I loved the view, the shade, and the fact that I could eat all the BBQ and club sandwiches that I could carry in my arms – you see, there was a small food stand not too far away, and it was never crowed. That is very important to a 12 year old kid!
This water color sketch is actually the second water color I have ever attempted (no one will see the first). I have just recently wanted to learn how to use watercolor, that is, ever since I found the work of Frank Frazetta.
Growing up reading Conan comics, I soon fell in love with his art and style. I never knew who had actually painted the images that so vividly inspired my childhood imagination until many years later… After reacquainting myself with his art and researching how he goes about painting – I was blown away by his sketches and especially his watercolors. I have been in somewhat of a trance ever since. The movement of Frazetta’s figures is so powerful and strong, I just couldn’t see how that would translate through his “Mickey Mouse” watercolor set (You have to see it for yourself - he used a set of cheap kids Mickey Mouse watercolors!). The way he used his preliminary watercolor sketches, to solidify his vision, before he started his final painting in oils, was truly astounding. I had to try it for myself!
Having painted the Augusta National many times in oil, I have found a fresh, new way to do my preliminary sketches, well, new to me at least. Instead of using only my pencil or pen to sketch out the beginning of my paintings, I now get to use color – and I love it!
This is a water color sketch of the Golden Bell, #12 at Augusta – one of the most beautiful, short and yet challenging holes in golf! Can anyone say 1996, Greg Norman? Still makes me queasy… Or Arnold Palmer’s embedded ball in 1958… Or how about Fred Couples’ miracle in 1992? Couples’ ball had to have several angels pressing it hard into the glassy slope to prevent it from being taken by the Golden Bell’s most fearsome guardian, Rae’s Creek.
There is just something special about painting the 12th hole for me; every time I lay color to an empty canvas to try to capture the emotion, design, and beauty that the great Bobby Jones and Alister Mackenzie first saw when they visited the old, abandoned Fruitland Nurseries property in Augusta Georgia - I always recall my first visit to the course that Bobby built. The way my senses were overwhelmed, a new world seemed to open up before me – It was as if I was met by a Smokin` Joe Frazier left hook to the body! The best art does that to you!
I hope that when you look at this, or any of my art work, that you can feel, even for a moment, a sense of the magic that I felt during my first visit to the Augusta National. If you look close enough you might just feel a slight breeze from the wind swirling above those magnificent Georgia pines…
