Distortion

 

Here is another painting from the new show at the Shemer Art Center.  This one is called "Goldfield" and it was painted by Ruta Janiulis.  The funny thing about this painting is that despite the distortion, I recognized the old western town of Goldfield.  

Here are two photos from the little town of Goldfield way out east of Phoenix.  It's a tourist spot in Apache Junction Arizona.  Do you see the resemblance?  

I did a post about Goldfield ghost town way back in 2013  and again in 2019.

Ms. Janiulis had one other painting in the show.  This one is called Street View.  

She does a good job painting a very distorted scene.

The Superstition Mountains

While I was in the Apache Junction area I decided to see if I could find the Mining Camp restaurant a place I've been to a few times but, not in a very long time.  I was happy see it's still there; closed for the summer season but preparing to open in few weeks.  It's located close to the end of this road and very close to the base of the Superstition Mountains.  Those mountains are widely known for the old stories about the Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine never found to this day.  The Mining Camp restaurant is one of those theme places where you dine in a huge mess hall just the way the old time miner's would, on tin plates and with tin cups.  There is always lots of bar-b-que and baked beans and corn bread.  It's one of those places where the food isn't memorable but the atmosphere is.  It sure sits in a great setting perched right below those spectacular mountains.

I have a new post on Sharon's Sojourns today.

Leaving the Goldfield Ghost Town

Two last shots from the Goldfield Ghost Town.  In the one above you get a glimpse of the Superstition Mountains in the background with that steam engine in the foreground.  I notice that old engine has some brand new tires on it.

Below is a photo of the town's water tank captured between the branches of a palo verde tree.

Red Truck

Hidden behind one of the buildings in the Goldfield Ghost Town was this bright red truck with the back decked out as a fire truck.  I added the painting effect myself.

I also noticed among the tourists enjoying the surroundings, this guy in the skirt....err....kilt.  A truly interesting fashion statement for Arizona.

Goldfield Ghost Town

The ghost town I found listed on my map is called Goldfield and it had an actual working gold mine that was very active between 1892 and 1898.  During that time the town of Goldfield grew rapidly almost eclipsing the city of Mesa in size at that time.  When the gold ran out, the town died.  The people who own this property have revived the place as a tourist attraction with tours of the mine and a narrow gauge railroad.  Most of the buildings have been added to resemble a real gold rush town of the 1890's era.  Above you see the Saloon and......

....here we have the town Bordello.

The interesting thing about this place is that you can wander around and enjoy the old buildings at no charge.  They do charge for the mine tours and the train rides but, I just wandered among the buildings enjoying the scenery.

It was a Sunday when I visited and the little town church actually held a church service.  Here you can see the congregation gathering outside after the service.

Tomorrow I'll show you a few more shots from this place.

Memories of Apache Land

I tend to stay away from long highway trips on a holiday weekend so instead I looked for something a little closer to home to explore.  I found an interesting reference to a "ghost town" on my Arizona Atlas and it was located just on the edge of Apache Junction, a city on the very eastern edge of the collections of cities that make up the Phoenix metropolitan area or The Valley of the Sun as it is commonly known.
So I headed in that direction and when I arrived in Apache Junction I found a museum I had never seen before.  They have gathered up the remnants of an old movie set/tourist site called Apache Land, a very popular movie location from 1959 to 2004.

There were displays like the above depicting a vintage western cabin and there was a wall of photos of many of the famous movie stars who made movies at the old location.  I enjoyed seeing those photos and reading some of the old newspaper coverage about the star's arrival in Arizona.  This place was an unexpected surprise.

On to the "ghost town" tomorrow.

The Old West

Stagecoach parked under the shade tree, country church in the background, looks like I've found the remnants of the old west.  Tomorrow I'll show you where I found this scene.