When I was a kid, I use to get excited when a storm would blow in off the ocean. I’d walk down to the Newport pier that was less than a mile away and take a ‘secret’ passage that went under the structure and led to a ramp where the all day fishing boats loaded passengers. I’d perch myself on one of the wooden beams suspended above the deep blue-green water and watch the huge waves come within touching distance as they rolled in off the Pacific. In the evenings, I’d listen to the rain falling on the roof and go to sleep, feeling the contentment of knowing I was warm and dry.
When it rains here in Springfield, both my wife – a Southern California girl who loves rain – and I love to stare out the window into our backyard and watch the show. It’s exciting for us both when it really pours. The amount of water that can come out of the sky here is nothing short of miraculous.
We were in Fresh Gallery, a local establishment here in downtown Springfield, when one of those springtime deluges hit. Campbell Street turned into Campbell River. The curbs disappeared and the sidewalks flooded. All the colors of the streetlights and shimmering cars and the reflections of it all was simply breathtaking. It was one of those beautiful scenes that needed to be recreated for everyone to enjoy. So the painting was born in the instant I saw the texture of the falling water and that light reflecting off the wet, red brick of the crosswalk.
I love rain and I love this painting!
