The Iceman Freezeth
We are experiencing a mid-September heat wave as I write this blog, so perhaps this will serve to help cool people down and remind everyone that more bitter weather may lie a scant few months ahead.
This is a Toronto scene from the Parkdale neighborhood circa 1924. The delivery man is dropping off blocks of ice to residents for use in their ice boxes, which predated modern refrigerators. Since this is a west end scene, the blocks were likely sourced from Grenadier Pond. The Don River and Lake Ontario were also important ice sources at this time.
The painting is based on an actual archival photo, and I can't think of a colder job than this one, as undoubtedly the man's clothes weren't of the down-filled variety we have today. I like to paint scenes of working people because I find it helps my pieces avoid being overly sentimental, a lurking danger for anyone who paints scenes of the "good old days". Likely few people today have any appreciation of how tough life was back then. But every now and then, I'm approached by elderly patrons at art shows who can still remember ice blocks being delivered by horse and sleigh. Those encounters always make my day.
This is a Toronto scene from the Parkdale neighborhood circa 1924. The delivery man is dropping off blocks of ice to residents for use in their ice boxes, which predated modern refrigerators. Since this is a west end scene, the blocks were likely sourced from Grenadier Pond. The Don River and Lake Ontario were also important ice sources at this time.
The painting is based on an actual archival photo, and I can't think of a colder job than this one, as undoubtedly the man's clothes weren't of the down-filled variety we have today. I like to paint scenes of working people because I find it helps my pieces avoid being overly sentimental, a lurking danger for anyone who paints scenes of the "good old days". Likely few people today have any appreciation of how tough life was back then. But every now and then, I'm approached by elderly patrons at art shows who can still remember ice blocks being delivered by horse and sleigh. Those encounters always make my day.
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