Olde Blue

Artist:   Dorothy Bryan

Sponsor:   Callaway Henderson Sotheby’s International Realty

Artist's Design Statement

Winning Bid:  $2,550

My family were farmers and I married a farmer 62+ years ago. My husband and I farmed roughly 200 acres of land to raise crops of hay, corn, oats and soybeans to feed our cattle. We farmed a part of what is now the Mercer Meadows County Park on Federal City Road in Hopewell Township. I decided to paint my ox with similar markings to the cattle we raised.

Did you know that a team of yoked oxen is handled by a person who walks on the side of the team? The handler may use a stick to touch the ox’s back lightly to aid in their movement. The handler gives the directions of “Gee” meaning to move to the right and “Haw” to move to the left.

I like to watercolor paint animals and landscapes from my photos, cane chairs and splint chair seats, as well as do Sudoku and crossword puzzles. I enjoy the outdoor, nature, flowers and had a vegetable garden until 5 years ago. We are world travelers, and were lucky to be part of a “People to People” trip to China in 1979 with 25 farmers and then NJ Secretary of Agriculture, Phil Alampi. 

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