“What I try to do with my artwork is make the viewer feel the way I felt when I was at that location. To achieve this, I exaggerate the brightness of the colors a bit when I’m working with watercolors and intensify the values of the colors so that when someone looks at the work, they say, ‘I feel like I was there.’ That’s my goal.” – Linnea W. Rhodes
The vibrant watercolor pen and ink rendering of the Davis Park Casino, which graces our June 20 Fire Island News cover in celebration of its 80th anniversary, was painted by Linnea Rhodes, a longtime Davis Park summer resident and an active member of the artist collective that has formed in Fire Island’s easternmost community.
Rhodes resides in New Jersey but has been coming to Davis Park since the 1960s, first as a grouper. She would meet her husband at Davis Park, who was participating in another group share not far from where she was staying on Pepperidge Walk. They wed in 1968, purchased their first home in Davis Park together, and started a family. Her two sons and now her grandchildren still spend time with her there every summer.
Before first coming to Davis Park, she majored in graphic arts at Douglas College, which is now part of Rutgers University. After graduating from Douglas, Rhodes became an Assistant Art Director at Norcross Greeting Cards. While raising her family, she started a business of producing ink drawings of houses on commission in her hometown of Westfield, NJ. Her years of architectural drawing remain evident in her work today in its keen draftsmanship.
In 1989, Rhodes became the Executive Director of Westfield Day Care Center and put her art aside for the next decade. By 2000, she had picked up her ink quills once again, this time introducing a color to her palette.
“I got to the point where I was joining art groups and starting to show my work,” said Rhodes. “My younger son, who is also an artist, suggested it. Now I create pen and ink drawings, and then I add watercolor to them. It’s a bit unique and not a strict watercolor because I’m filling in the lines I’ve already established. That’s my process.”
Her art prints are available for sale at the Harbor Store in Davis Park, and she produces postcards and stationery that can be purchased at the Davis Park Post Office. Rhodes also regularly participates in the annual Davis Park Arts & Crafts Show, which
takes place on Labor Day. She also exhibits her artwork frequently at multiple venues in New Jersey, New York, and Massachusetts.
Visit her website at linneawrhodes.artspan.com or fireislandartists.com.
