2 minute read
Moving Mountains
Larry Richardson (right) with winning bidder Todd Harvey
BY BECKY WOOD, MANAGING EDITOR
Appalachian Morning Soars At Flying High
“The openness, that’s what you experience; there’s nothing between you and the clouds.”
That was Larry Richardson’s first impression of Roan Mountain, the subject of his signature piece for Flying High 2021. Every year, a signature artist is chosen by the Customs House Museum & Cultural Center to create a unique piece of art for its largest annual fundraiser.
Richardson, known for his work depicting scenes along the Cumberland River, took this opportunity to bring a slice of East Tennessee wilderness here to Clarksville.
Roan Mountain is nestled in the Unaka Range of the Southern Appalachian Mountains along the Tennessee-North Carolina border. In the summer, the mountain is sprinkled with patches of pink and crimson rhododendron blooms, mimicking the roan horse coat color pattern. “Roan” is also a Scots-Irish word for “red.”
“But, the most unusual site in the highest points were the ‘balds,’ where only shrubs and grasses grow,” explained Richardson. “Botanists are still trying to figure out why this centuries-long phenomenon exists.”
As an avid writer, painter and naturalist, Richardson has been visiting Roan Mountain for over fifty years. “I had just graduated with a master’s degree in biology and joined the Tennessee State Parks naturalist team. To become familiar with Tennessee’s natural beauty, a field trip to the eastern-most prominence took place in June where Roan Mountain’s famous rhododendron bloom was underway. The mountainsides were draped in reds and pinks. At 6,200 feet, we were literally in the clouds.”
At Flying High, Appalachian Morning capped off the evening’s live auction, which featured a variety of works by local artists. Richardson’s oil painting brought in $5,000 for the Museum with a winning bid by Todd Harvey of Byers & Harvey Real Estate.
“Painting is for my own enjoyment, and if others like what’s on the canvas, then it’s even more enjoyable for me,” said Richardson. “There is always a painting in progress on the easel with a subject captured by my camera or saved in my sketchbook.
“Appalachian Morning is a tribute to the awe-inspiring vista that arouses wanderlust in one to seek other adventures in the wilderness. And, I have.”
