Al Mohler Rustic Painter of Slabs of Wood

 

The Rustic Paintings of Al Mohler.

Did you ever wonder the story behind those paintings on slices of wood which are essential for a rustic cabin in the woods?  Brother to the saw paintings, and sister to the slate paintings for sale in Jackson Square, New Orleans?  Here's the guy!  It's AL MOHLER and his wooden slab paintings!

If you follow this blog (gosh…6 years now)  you know I love to elevate the lesser to the greater.  So let's look at the king of the knotty pine painters!  He picked an unusual medium, but he used it half-a century and created a serious body of work.

A Minnesota master, like most folk art painters Al painted on anything, but the most familiar are the oval shaped pieces of pine.  He would paint animals for the most part.  The bigger the better, and the Al Mohler tribute site mentions a painting of a bear on a slab 39 inches across!  THAT is a big slice of tree.  He did small ones too, and the little one here shows the reverse.  Look for  the authentic Al Mohler studio stamp.  His career lasted over 50 years.

There is a creepy, right wing evangelist named Albert Mohler spreading ignorant venom around the south currently…needless to say that ain't the guy.  I am going to guess the Al Mohler we are interested in here was a wonderful man who loved everyone and brought considerable joy into the world with his paintings. 

Mohler sold his paintings from the little studio with the big sign shown in my photo above!  I am hoping the photo is worth more than his paintings, but I doubt it.  They are collected, and it seems every one on ebay sells. 

The go to guy for Al Mohler paintings is Kirk Schnitker who runs the Al Mohler Art site from which I took the lovely logo here.  He will do appraisals, may from time to time have work for sale and is documenting the work.  Check out his site HERE.
Original photograph of Al Mohler and his studio Collection Jim Linderman

Books and Ebooks by Jim Linderman are available HERE

A Tiny House Cabin for a Folk Art Collection and Studio

A Tiny House for Folk Art
 
Moving to Michigan and wanting a backyard barn for a modest folk art collection, studio and man-cave, I commissioned the fine folks at Mast Barns to create one for me.

The tiny house is 10" x 18" and features a tin roof, skylight and transom windows, a loft bed, double hung windows with screens and a  pre-hung locking door.  The house is wired for light, and as winter is approaching, a small space heater works fine.  I will add a small air-conditioner in the spring. 

A four inch base of stone insures level positioning.
 
The Inside is fully insulated and lined with 3/4" plywood. 

Rudimentary shelves were installed for display, and all floor objects move under the loft providing room for a queen-sized air mattress for guests (the loft is large enough for one)

What is left to do?  Wood putty finishing for seams and additional painting.  A folding desk which will drop down when not in use.  Molding and baseboard.  The roof joints will be left exposed.

This shack is far more substantial than a large percentage of the world has to live in, and many here use similar, if less decorative houses for hunting cabins.

For those of you who would like to live cheap and off the grid, the Tiny House Listings website provides an opportunity to browse similar little cabins already made.