Debra Keirce

My Story of my Langham Hotel - Boston Commission

2/21/2021 3:22:16 PM
9 Comments

In August of 2019, I was contacted by a representative of a design firm in London, England. They asked me if I would be interested in painting some pieces for the Langham Hotel in Boston.

Here is an article about the art in www.langhamhotels.com/en/the-langham/boston/media-centre/new-art-collection/

The Langham hotel building used to be the old Federal reserve Bank of the US between 1922 and 1977.

The theme of their design is New England portraiture. They want the art collection to be representative of the culture and the art of Massachusetts and Boston in particular.

They liked your way of reinventing old masters paintings adding contemporary objects to the ensemble of the image.

8 commissioned 3/4 portrait 30 x 40 inches for the restaurant:

The commission is for 8 former presidents of the Federal Reserve Bank when it was located in Boston, and the style similar to John Singleton Copley.

The former presidents to be portrayed are:

W.P.G. Harding

Roy A. Young

William W. Paddock

Ralph E. Flanders

Laurence F. Whittemore

Joseph A. Erickson

George H. Ellis

Frank E. Morris

My prompt response was YES!

Fast forward to January 2021. We were still in the midst of the covid 19 pandemic, so the completion of this hotel was far from my mind. But in 2020, I learned that the Langham Hotel in Boston was indeed being constructed to open in April 2021, and because the design firm had located me through Copley Society of Art, they would be my agent for this commission.

I had lots of questions, but little contact with the design firm or with Copley, until it was showtime. So, in February of 2021, when the purchase orders and contracts were drawn up, I had the scary task of draining my bank account to purchase eight frames for the 30 x 40 inch portraits, as well as the aluminum composite panels I would paint them on.

Miniature Paintings

They also commissioned me to repaint three of my previously sold palm sized miniature paintings for the bar area. Those, I was to ship to a West Virginia company who would frame them and then ship them to the installer in Boston. The three miniature pieces were the low hanging fruit for me, so I worked on those and got them delivered by the March 2021 deadline.

Here are images and stories of those pieces:

I painted two of the “Mani-Pedi” paintings. You see, the original was a 7”x5” painting. So even though the purchase order said the hotel team wanted a 5” x 5” painting, I was convinced that in the end they would tell me last minute to cough up a 7”x5” painting. You can see them both. The shape does impact the composition. But as it turns, out it was only me, the artist, who cared about that detail. In the end they took and paid for the 5”x5” piece.

Side note - I still feel the 7 inch tall composition works better for this image.

“”Mani Pedi Again” is a 5” x 5” oil painting

“Mani Pedi Yet Again is a 7” x 5” oil painting

Here’s the story behind this piece originally:

Hand signals can evoke so much emotion, can't they? My son gave me this shoe form for Christmas one year. He knew it would be an excellent still life prop. The articulated hand was a natural pairing.

Manicures and pedicures make the humans attached to hands and feet feel attractive and good about themselves. Where I live in northern Virginia, there's a nail salon in every neighborhood. But let's face it. Toenails are pretty gross. And my old lady hands aren't going to ever be used in product shots to sell gel nails. But most artists prefer to paint the aging, wrinkled, been around the block a few times appendages. Give me hands and feet that have lived a lifetime and I will happily spend hours rendering them. There's beauty in the aging and the broken.

“Balanced Books Again” is a 4” x 4” oil painting

Here it its story:

There are lots of plantations in the American south. I was at one in Tennessee, and these books were set on a mantle, against period wallpaper. They were too old for me to read the spines, so I don't know if they were hymnals, fiction, farming almanacs, or journals. You aren't allowed to touch the displays, so I couldn't open them. They were just old and worn, and sitting there getting even older, not giving up any of their secrets. There was something intriguing about them. You can almost hear whispers of the plantation family and servants.

I have relatives like this. They have probably shared everything they remember, but I still feel like they are getting harder to question, and there are things in the family history that they aren't telling me. It's always a balance between what they want to divulge, what they can recall, what I imagine, and the way I phrase the questions.

“Campanello Again” is a 4” x 4” oil painting

Here is how it came to be:

That time I went to Venice - It was a thrill to see a potential painting at every turn. When I wasn't seeing paintings, I was seeing the same sights as Titian, Michaelangelo, and so many masters.

I have no idea who the Campanellos are, or if they even live anymore at the address where I found their doorbell. But who doesn't want to poke a lion on his tongue? And the fact that he's only shiny where he gets poked, speaks to his antiquity.

I think sometimes people are that way. At least I am. I'm shiniest where I keep getting poked. And every time it happens, I make noise.

Back to the 40 inch tall portraits:

Meanwhile, the bulk of the project, those eight portrait paintings, began to take shape. It turns out that because of the pandemic, the borders closed for a bit and plastics sourced from China, like the polyethylene core that aluminum composite panels are made from, became scarce. I use this surface because it is incredibly archival, and when I paint pieces as large as 40 inches tall, I don’t want to have the hotel hunt me down in 20 years to restretch canvas or repair warping masonite. I’ll be approaching 80 at that time, and hope to stay off ladders!

Lucky me, I found a plastics supply company in Baltimore that had one sheet of dibond left in stock that they would cut into panels for me and ship to my studios. Talk about a nail biter though. What are the odds that I would be down to the wire and worried about sourcing a very commonly used panel? That wrinkle never even crossed my mind.

In January, the design team approved two preliminary paintings for two of the eight portraits. These paintings are sketches that show the concept I have for the larger pieces. They are just flat color shapes to depict the composition and the local colors. These are not at all representative of or small paintings of my finished proposed artworks, but they are useful in helping commission clients to visualize what I intend to paint. That way we can be sure we are all on the same page before I create something that differs from what they want.

Here is the preliminary rendering for Roy A. Young.

This is a sketch of Roy A. Young's presidency, inspired by Copley's painting of Samuel Adams. Roy served as president of the Federal Reserve in Boston for 12 years of the Great Depression. He began his banking career at age 8 as a messenger for a bank. In a controversy between the board and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Young disagreed with policy endorsed by the board. Young refused to sign the 1929 Annual Report of the Board, because it contained parts favorable to putting direct pressure on the lending banks.

In my allegorical painting of Roy A. Young's presidency, I chose the composition of the iconic Samuel Adams painting by John Singleton Copley. I have to believe that serving as president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston during the bulk of the depression had to be one of the most trying of experiences. So I would like to honor Young by painting his story in a setting inspired by this very famous work of Copley.

I will place a spike holding messages on the desk. The depression was a time of pink slips indicating you lost your employment, for many Americans. Also, the messages in offices were often on pink paper. I will put the name of Young's wife on some of the messages, as if they were placed there by a secretary, telling him his wife called. Of course, this prop is also a nod to his job as a messenger when he was a young boy. The clock is set at 4 o'clock because he was the 4th president. The rolled paper relates to the story of the annual report Young did not sign.

This is the image I was asked to use for the portrait, as well as the painting by John Singleton Copley I was asked to pay homage to for each of the portraits:

So you can see I made a few changes and put my own spin on these.

My preliminary rendering of Frank E Morris was also approved in January. Here it is with its story:

In this allegorical painting of Frank E. Morris' presidency, I chose the composition John Singleton Copley painted of Moses Gill. Gill was acting governor of Massachusetts for a year, and led the settling of Princeton, MA.

Frank E. Morris was born in Detroit, MI and graduated from The University of Michigan. I, the artist, Debra Keirce, was born in Detroit, MI and graduated from The University of Michigan.

I will paint Morris, the 10th president, leaning against a 1968 Chevrolet C10 pickup. 1968 is the year he was appointed president of The Federal Reserve Bank in Boston. Of course, Detroit, the Motor City, was proud of their car industry, and the trucks were marketed as strong, resilient, long lasting, hard working vehicles. Red is the color of the Ohio State University Buckeyes football team. When I graduated from The University of Michigan in 1983, they were our biggest rivals in the sport.

The figure in this piece is wearing maize and blue colors, the colors of The University of Michigan Wolverines football team. In the figure's hand, I will paint a 1983 OSU vs. UM football ticket, with seat #10 because Morris was the 10th president of the Boston Fed. It will have Row 55 because he graduated from the university with his Ph.D in economics in 1955. It will have Section 20 because he served as president for 20 years, longer than anyone in the Bank's history.

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And then I got to work on the remaining six preliminary renderings. As of, February 21, 2021, I am biting my nails, hoping there aren’t any complete reworks required. This is such a tight timeline. I have panic attacks thinking about it!

These are my other six preliminaries.

William P.G. Harding, 3rd President

William P.G. Harding was the 3rd president of the Boston Fed. I am inspired by John Singleton Copley’s portrait of John Adams. There are 3 buttons on his sleeve, one for each year of William’s service. Harding’s grandfather was the American painter Chester Harding, and I painted a portrait of him that appears to be watching over his grandson.

Harding is responsible for instituting the practice of holding annual meetings with member banks, so I have him holding the meeting minutes in his hand. Also, he wrote a book in 1925, The Formative Years of the Federal Reserve System. A copy of it is set on top of a map of Cuba. He was invited to advise the Cuban government on reorganizing its financial and accounting systems.

The crimson tablecloth and grey of his coat allude to the fact that Harding graduated from The University of Alabama. Crimson and grey are the school colors. William P.G. Harding received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in 1880 and 1881. He holds the record for being the youngest full graduate in the history of the university.

William W. Paddock, 5th President

William W. Paddock, the 5th president at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, is standing in front of pillars with 5 stripes each. He spent time as a clerk for the War Department in the Philippines and the background is a scene of the nipa houses that were common there in the early 1900’s.

Paddock earned a bachelor’s degree in law from George Washington University, and he is shown holding his diploma in his hand. This painting has a patriotic color scheme, because William studied at the University of Pennsylvania (colors are red and blue) before earning his bachelor’s degree from George Washington University (colors are blue and buff.)

The painting I used for inspiration in this composition is John Singleton Copley’s figure of Nathaniel Sparhawk.

Ralph E. Flanders, 6th President

Ralph E. Flanders has six buttons on his breast, because he was the 6th president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. He served beginning in 1944. The 1944 Farmers Almanac page in his book is a nod to the Rhode Island farm he grew up on.

Before becoming the president of the Boston Fed, Flanders was president of the Jones and Lamson Machine Company. I felt that also deserved a page in his book.

The John Hancock Portrait of John Singleton Copley’s has a pen in the hand, but Ralph is holding his pipe in this portrait. He was appointed to the US Senate from Vermont in 1946, and served until 1959. The U.S. Capitol building, the way it looked in 1959, is in the background of this painting.

Ralph E. Flanders had no education beyond his Central Falls High School diploma. This is the same high school the American actress Viola Davis graduated from. The school colors are red and navy, like the fabrics in this painting.

Laurence F. Whittemore, 7th President

Laurence F. Whittemore, the 7th president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, began as a car shop laborer with the Boston and Maine Railroad. Note the 7 on the engine in this painting. He also worked at the Maine Central Railroad.

A 1948 Time magazine is rolled up on the table because an article wrote about how Laurence piped music into the federal reserve building. The sheet music his hand is resting on is “5 Minutes More” by Frank Sinatra. It was a hit in 1946, the year Whittemore was elected president of the bank.

Blue is the color of the background curtain in this painting, because that is the color for The University of New Hampshire. Mr. Whittemore was a trustee for several schools and colleges, but he lived out his life in New Hampshire. Coincidentally, he died in Concord, NH which is a place I lived for 2 years, the same amount of time he was president of the Boston Fed.

Joseph A. Erickson, 8th President

The Epes Sargent II painting by John Singleton Copley inspired my painting of Joseph A. Erickson. Colors symbolize much in this artwork. In 1961, when Erickson left the federal reserve, the mint green color was very chic for appliances. The clock minute hand points to 12 because Joseph served for 12 years as president. The hour is 8 because he “clocks in” as the 8th president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

His suit is light blue, the color that symbolizes peace. He was a member of the reparation division of the American Peace Commission after serving as a lieutenant in the US Army during World War I.

Erickson’s bachelor’s degree from Harvard University is the reason for the crimson color of the curtain.

George H. Ellis, 9th President

George H. Ellis grew up in Maine and as an undergraduate, attended The University of Maine as whose colors are light blue and dark blue. He earned a masters degree and PhD in economics from Harvard University. Harvard alumni wear crimson in support of their team.

Ellis is the first formally trained economist to serve as president of the Boston Fed, so he has a handful of money. In his other hand are his university diplomas. The number 9 on his pin refers to the fact that he was the 9th president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

George was a lifelong member of the Wellesley Congregational Church, and you can see its steeple in the background of this painting. John Singleton Copley’s portrait of Woodbury Langdon inspired the composition for this piece.

OMG! OMG! It’s happening!! I just received this e-mail today, Feb 24 from the design firm! I have the frames arriving in the spring and will drive these up to Boston in October 2021!

I just got notice that the design firm thought my narratives were really thoughtful and interesting, and that the colors will work well in the space. They approved the preliminary paintings and asked me to move forward with creation of the full scale works.

FINISHED FIGURATIVE WORKS

May I now present to you, in order of their completion - my original oil paintings, all 40"x30" oil on aluminum composite dibond panel:

William P. G. Harding, 3rd president

Detail images:

Roy A. Young, 4th president

Detail images:

William W. Paddock, 5th President

Detail Images:

Ralph E. Flanders, 6th President

Detail Images:

The first four portraits were shipped to Boston in AirFloat Boxes!

Because the hotel opening is scheduled for mid June, and because I'm still home busily painting, there was no way for me to deliver these paintings from my Virginia studio to the Boston area, as they were being created. Installing them at the hotel is being done by a third party, but they will need scaffolding to do it, so it's a big operation. So, my agent got creative and worked out a way to fully insure and ship my first four paintings in time for the hotel opening... while the scaffolding is there already.

I still plan to deliver the other four portraits myself, in October. I want to see my old stomping grounds in New England. Also, part of me is sad to see these boys go. They've been keeping me company all year. I've been that crazy artist, talking to her portrait paintings while alone in her studio. At least I don't sing or dance for them like some of my artist friends do.

This is what my house looked like a few hours ago -

And this is what my four big soldiers look like now - waiting for their Boston deployment!

Just a few days after my first four paintings were shipped north, I finished my fifth piece, Laurence F. Whittemore. He's looking pretty handsome in his frame, methinks!

Laurence F. Whittemore, 7th President

Detail Images:

Duking it Out With Joseph

I'm writing this story in real time. It's mid July, and I want to stop the train of completed paintings to give you a peek in to some of what's really going on.

While it may appear as though I am just swimming merrily along, paintings are always a bit of work, no matter how seasoned we artists are. Some are more work than others. I invite you to watch this video where I share with you about the punches that Joseph and I have been throwing at each other all week. I still love him, but it's like the love a parent has for their annoying teenage child. You have to keep telling yourself - This too shall pass.

Joseph A. Erickson, 8th President

Detail Images:

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I interrupt this progress report for an important announcement-

July 8th, the Langham Boston Hotel held their grand opening!

I had business in New York with three figurative paintings of mine that are now part of the U.S. Coast Guard permanent art collection. Otherwise, I would have been thrilled to attend the grand opening. All three of my miniature paintings are hanging in the hotel pub, and four of my portraits are installed in the fine dining area. The Copley Society representative took photos for me. I wanted to share them here:

"Balanced Books Again" 5" x 5"