Stephen Shoemaker: The Paintings and Their Stories

North Carolina artist Stephen Shoemaker and writer Janet Chiswell Pittard have teamed up to present a selection of Shoemaker’s paintings and drawings and the stories behind them. The narrative, told in Shoemaker’s voice, is informal and geared toward a general audience, suitable for children, as well as adults, particularly train buffs, lovers of regional history, and fans of Shoemaker’s work. The story telling and pictures combine to entertain and educate the reader about the unique culture and history of the mountain region served by the train called the Virginia Creeper, which ran from Abingdon, Virginia to Elkland, North Carolina, and to offer a rare glimpse into the evolution of an artist and his art.

The book features 48 images, including the eight watercolours in the Virginia Creeper series and many paintings and drawings created especially for this publication. The 32 stories are an eclectic blend of humour, adventure, and tragedy. The result is a scrapbook of an artist’s development, full of insights into the thought process involved in creating his artwork, sources of inspiration, and the clues or symbols incorporated in the scenes. The narrative is peppered with short poems by Pittard, which help give the text an element of the unexpected.