Last month I discovered Jake Gariepy, a self-made illustrator working out of his 100-year-old farmhouse in Eugene, Oregon. Jake specializes in custom house portraits as well as historically inspired renderings of the White House, First Lady fashion, British royalty and botanicals. I caught my first glimpse of his art on Instagram and reached out immediately about the possibility of a commission for the Everly Brothers Childhood Home Foundation in Shenandoah, Iowa. He has created illustrations for the White House Historical Association, the JFK, Nixon and FDR presidential libraries and many more museums and historic sites.
Jake generously offered to donate his time, talent and resources to create this unique medium of storytelling as part of the foundation's ongoing fundraising efforts (while also mentioning that he was an Everly Brothers fan)! In Shenandoah the Everlys endured economic hardship and uncertainty but rising above it was a hearty abundance of tenacity, music-making and the happiness and warming love-light of home and family which I think Jake's vision beautifully captures.
"I've said it before...even a simple house is worth considering for a house portrait. The humblest of homes can be filled with just as many happy and inspiring memories as the grandest and most architecturally interesting. If you've been happy there, it's most certainly worth capturing with the very same degree of care and creativity!"
Thank you, Jake, for sharing with us your sense of historicism and artistic imaginings in support of the ongoing preservation of the Everly Brothers childhood home! -Sheryl
Work in progress! May 22, 2018:
“These places that are the containers of life and experience – the mother lode of societies and cultures – have always provided an amazing account of the human condition in all of its uncommon, unpredictable, and unexpected diversity. The built record, which holds most of the lessons of art and history, is there for anyone to see..." -Ada Louise Huxtable, The Unreal America: Architecture and Illusion
The completed illustration, May 24, 2018!
The portrait will be on display at our concert fundraiser June 24, 2018, featuring The Everly Brothers Experience! We are working on creating ordering options for art prints, notecards and Christmas ornaments possibly at the event and online and we may also have some items to auction. Stay tuned to the Facebook page for details! -Sheryl