Too Close To Death To Die

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"Too Close To Death To Die"

"I've decided to hike to the old mining town of Apparition, a hard trip that
takes hours longer than planned. I'd heard that the only remaining building
there was the undertaker's, and that he was also the town's barber and
surgeon. It was said he could barber, butcher, or bury with equal
enthusiasm.

"As darkness envelops the canyon, a wreck of a building looms suddenly before me. I decide to spend the night in its shelter, but sleep evades me. It is past midnight when I hear stamping of hooves, snorting, gentle neighs.

"Peering through a shattered window, I see moonlight flooding the dead town,
alive now with the unliving -- spectral horses, ghostly miners raising no
dust as they converge on the saloon.

Faint laughter, tinkling piano, the snap of cards, aces and eights. I feel myself being slowly drawn from the undertaker's world... into the night... into the heart of Apparition."

September's Name-The-Painting contest drew a wealth of entries, and the final selections made for difficult decisions. Above you'll see both the title and the story, that took the honors. Awards have been sent to Ella Riddle for the title, and to Kathy Mills for the story, which I have edited somewhat.

The painting itself was inspired by my sudden thought one day, that as a painter, working in the West, with a love of haunted places... how could I have for so long ignored ghost towns? The painting you see here combines structures and images that came to life as I carefully researched the wealth of material available in Arizona's largest libraries, and on the web. With a stack of sketches before me, my imagination kicked in, and ultimately my brush took command.

Too Close To Death To Die has been meticulously scanned from my original watercolor and digitally printed with fade-resistant inks on specially treated heavyweight watercolor paper. I personally inspect your print, sign it, slip it into its protective clear plastic envelope, and include with it a page of helpful framing hints from The Haunted Studio.

LARGE FORMAT PRINT (13" x 19") The image measures 12" x 18" on 13" x 19" paper. Your finished, perfect print is carefully rolled for mailing to you $59.00, Priority Mail postage FREE in US.	MEDIUM FORMAT PRINT (11" x 14") The image measures 7-1/2" x 9-1/2", within a charcoal-over-white double mat, plus rigid foam-core backing, ready to drop into any readily available 11" x 14" frame. $59.00, Priority Mail postage FREE in US.

Too Close To Death To Die is also available in new Small Format size The image measures 6.5" x 4.5" within an 10" x 8" charcoal-over-white double mat, with rigid backing. This size is ideal for framing in any standard 8" x 10" photo frame. Small Format prints may be assorted for best prices: 1 print $29.00; 2 prints $49.00; 3 prints $69.00 For more information about Small Format prints, please click here.
THE ORIGINAL WATERCOLOR PAINTING IS AVAILABLE Image size 13.5" x 21.5". Handsomely double-matted, measuring 20" x 28", and ready to frame. $950.00, Careful crating, shipping and insurance are additional, based on your location worldwide. If you are interested in this painting please email me by clicking here.