It’s been more than a little crazy around here lately, with house renovations, weddings and engagement sessions. In the middle of it all, my blog has virtually been down for a couple of weeks. While setting up my new online proofing galleries (which I’m super excited about), I’ve run into virtually every problem that a girl could encounter. Thanks to Brian at Skooks Design, I’m up and running again (deep sigh of relief). I’ve had enough technical aggravation to last me for a while and so I’m ready to get back to basics. I mean like early 1900’s. So this is a bit of a story, but I’ll try to get to the point. Our house was built by Howard Logan Hildebrandt who was a prominent American impressionist painter. He lived here with his wife Cornelia, who also painted, and her sister Miss Ellis. Mr. Hildebrandt has many works of art hanging in our town’s halls and who knows how many privately collected works of art scattered about. I’ll never forget coming home from art school one vacation and seeing the painting of Miss Ellis against the wall in an unusual place. “What’s Miss Ellis doing down, are you sending her out for restoration?”, I ask. No, says my Mother. “I’m donating her to the town”. “What?! She’s a beautiful painting that came with the house and she lives here!-I mean she even lived here!” I just wouldn’t have it. “If your going to just give her away, than she is mine” says I. And so it comes that I not only ended up with Miss Ellis, but in later years we purchased the house that she and the Hildebrandts lived in. I’m fairly nostalgic for the history of it all at this point. So when I was contacted by The New Canaan Historical Society inquiring if I knew where any of his works might be located, I cringed, and then realized that I’d have to share my treasure. Mr. Hildebrandt would have wanted it that way. The New Canaan Historical Society will have a collection of his works on display from May 21 to October 1, 2010. Miss Ellis has become a major fixture in my life and I’m so going to miss her.
