Nestled in the quaint village of
historic
Mauricetown, New Jersey,
you will find, ‘The Primitive Pineapple’. The
resident tole painter,
Inez, has been painting for 20 years. She started painted with oils,
but after having the opportunity to take a class with Jackie Shaw in
Smithburg, Maryland the decision was made to turn to acrylics.
Teachers who have been a great influence on her painting
include Jackie Shaw, Jean Zawickie, Pipka, Susie Wolfe, and
Maxine Thomas.
Always hunting for something unusual to create, she finally
came upon gourds, cypress knees, and driftwood. Cypress
knees are challenging to incorporate every lump and bump into a
Santa. Often you will find three to five santas to paint on one knee.
Cypress knees grow in the swamps along the bayous of the
South. Extensions from the roots are called knees. Cutting the
knees from the roots does not damage the tree. No two knees are
ever the same and can never be duplicated. They sometimes may
be similar, but not exact.
Driftwood is a lot like cypress knees always a different shape
and another challenge to paint which makes it very interesting.
Please browse through this site to see the many interesting
figures that have been created. Hope you will like them.
