grace grits and gardening

ramblings from an arkansas farm girl

  • Home
  • About
  • Media
  • Crafts
  • Farm
  • Food
  • Garden
  • Reading & Books
  • Sunday Letter
  • SHOP!
  • Privacy Policy

the art of Cannon Beach

August 23, 2013 By Talya Tate Boerner 3 Comments

We wandered into the art studio of Richard Gorsuch, who paints from his cute bungalow just off Ocean Drive in Cannon Beach.  Instead of ferns and hanging baskets, his porch overflowed with a paint-smeared easel and work-in-process oil paintings.
He pulled us inside past his turquoise screen door, and I immediately felt at home.
With a round face, white beard and rosy cheeks, he was the Miracle on 34th Street Kris Kringle. His eyes even twinkled when he spoke of his love for art and Cannon Beach and Haystack Rock.
He moved to Cannon Beach in 1999 specifically to paint Haystack Rock. Everyday he paints the rock, in different weather, different light, different seasons. That rock is my passion, he said. And I wanted my boys to grow up running on the sand, he added. And they did. (His boys, now in their twenties, are also artists living nearby.)
photo courtesy of Roy S. Talbot
It’s not been easy. We had just enough money to buy this place which was really only a shack at the time. Sometimes we weren’t sure we would survive living off our art, but so far we’ve made it. When you want something with your entire being, you find a way to make it happen.


We sat and visited with Mr. Gorsuch as though we had known him for years. We studied his paintings, the way he captured light off the tide pools, the way he painted peacefulness. 
Just beyond his window, thick, thriving hydrangea distracted me with flower heads the size of basketballs, more deep purple than blue. 

I wondered how he resisted painting the hydrangea. At least once.

talya

Filed Under: Crafts, Travel Tagged With: Oregon, Pacific Northwest

Wanna receive my monthly Newsletter? Sign up here!

Comments

  1. Patricia A. Laster says

    August 24, 2013 at 5:49 am

    More story fodder, huh? xoxo

    Reply
  2. Gayle Glass says

    August 24, 2013 at 7:37 am

    Thanks for sharing your vacation. I feel refreshed, myself!

    Reply
  3. Staci @ 7 on a Shoestring says

    October 22, 2013 at 8:47 pm

    I heard that Cannon Beach is amazing. I hope to make it there when I can get back to Oregon. And I love the story of Mr. Gorsuch. What a fabulous tale of passion for the arts.

    Reply

COMMENT: Cancel reply

Talya Tate Boerner


Hi! I'm Talya. Writer, Reader, Arkansas Master Naturalist / Master Gardener, Author of

THE ACCIDENTAL SALVATION OF GRACIE LEE (2016)

GENE, EVERYWHERE: a life-changing visit from my father-in-law (2020)

BERNICE RUNS AWAY (Now Available!)

Click to BUY NOW!

Talya Tate Boerner books
Gene, Everywhere

Never miss a blog post! Subscribe via email:

Receive my Monthly Newsletter?

Most Popular Posts…

  • Chicken Tortilla Soup
  • SHOP!
  • Yum Yum Cake - old southern recipe!
  • Nana's Strawberry Cake (the real one)
  • Sunday Letter: 01.29.23

Most Recent

  • Chicken Tortilla Soup
  • Sunday Letter: 01.29.23
  • Sunday Letter: 01.15.23
  • Sunday Letter: 01.08.23
  • Sunday Letter: 12.18.22

Grace Grits index

Prior Posts

Search Categories

Tags

A to Z April Blog Challenge Autumn BAT Book Reviews childhood Christmas creative writing prompt Dallas Desserts Eureka Springs Fall Fayetteville Food Gracie Lee Halloween Hemingway-Pfeiffer home humor Johnson Family Keiser Lake Norfork Lucy and Annabelle Mississippi County Mississippi Delta moving Munger Place Nana nature Northeast Arkansas Northwest Arkansas Osceola poem Reading Schnauzer simple living simple things spring spring gardening Summer sunday letter Talya Tate Boerner novel The Accidental Salvation of Gracie Lee Thomas Tate Winter Wordless Wednesday
Follow on Bloglovin

Food. Farm. Garden. Life.

THANKS FOR READING!

All content and photos Copyright Grace, Grits and Gardening © 2023 ยท Web Hosting By StrataByte