Charles E. Burchfield, Journals, July 3, 1965

B & I to the North Otto meeting house

A glorious day –

We got the impulse to go so late we had no time to prepare a picnic lunch so we went to Creans, and then drove southwards.

A steady S.W. wind; the sky full of great cumulus clouds, so many in fact that the blue sky showed only in spectacular shapes between the clouds, deep cobalt against the dazzling tops & sides of the cloud domes.

Far to the North a massive storm with a strange salmon tinge, against which the clouds of “our” territory appeared greenish white.

We arrived at the Locusts about 2:00 so we set up my easel at once. I had in mind painting one of the tall locusts with the theme “The tree that reached the sky” altho the dramatic sky effects were also almost overwhelmingly alluring.

I divided the tree into three parts the lower pattern to be done in warm strong earth tones, the next part in much lighter subdued colors, while the top appeared to be lost in the clouds.

I had performed a mount especially for this picture: 54 x 30 – The problem was how to reach the top portion, which was much higher than my head. Bertha solved this neatly by suggesting we place the easel close to cement landing in front of the meeting house – the lower portion to be down from the ground, the upper from the landing – it worked perfectly –

When I began painting, the “new” crescent moon suddenly appeared in the blue sky from behind a cloud – a pale white sliver with the outer curve facing the high July sun – a phenomenon rarely noticed altho it happens every month.

In the course of the afternoon – children from the farms south came to watch briefly – One boy on a small horse (I asked him its name; “he hasn’t any, I just call him Dumpy”, - Another boy & a girl on bicycles – I asked the girl if she could see the moon – she said she could not – “You think I’m fooling you don’t you?” – She grinned and said “yes” – So I showed her where it was.

Finished about 5:30 – or rather, brought it to a point where it could be finished later on in the studio.

We stopped at “Carl’s Restaurant in East Otto for supper – a pleasant place, and nice people. Home made vegetable soup, pressed beef patties, German potato salad, stewed tomatoes and grape-fruit – Mrs. “Carl” served. Carl’s mother, an elderly German lady, was the cook.

After we finished, the younger woman walked out with us to the yard – She had flowers planted all around the house – to my joy, I found growing by the house double wild morning-glory which I have not seen since I was a boy — a vine like these grow around a granite boulder on the other side of the street from us. We called it “California Rose” (I always suspected Joe of inventing the name. It had for us a romantic flavor.)

All the way home as it had been all day, the skies and landscape enchanted us to the point of intoxication – when we got home we found it had rained heavily.

Charles E. Burchfield, July 3, 1965