Dan's North Fork Cover Artist Scott Hartman Paints 'American Hero' for Veterans Day

This month’s cover of Dan’s Paper North Fork features a powerful work of art by Riverhead artist Scott Hartman. Here, he discusses the man who inspired his “American Hero” cover painting, working with his wife on collaborative North Fork paintings, and the couple’s art business and upcoming exhibition.

A Talk with Artist Scott Hartman

What inspired you to create this painting, and what makes Balmer an American hero?

The army jacket in my painting belonged to my cousin, PFC Wayne A. Balmer, who enlisted in the U.S. Army, completed his basic training and started his tour in Vietnam on October 7, 1965, with the 1st Infantry Division — The Big Red One. Sadly, he was killed on November 1, 1965, in South Vietnam while driving a troop transport truck that hit a landmine.

He was the only child of my aunt, Sarah Hartman Balmer, and my uncle, Russell Balmer, a World War II Navy veteran. Wayne was born and raised in the small rural town of Beaver Springs, PA (located in Central Pennsylvania). He was 24 years old when he died and the first soldier from Snyder County killed in the Vietnam War.

I was 6 years old and in 1st grade, and I still remember attending his military funeral. Sometime after his death, my aunt and uncle gave me the jacket, which was one of the few possessions they received back from the Army.

When was this painting completed, and what did the creation process entail?

The painting was completed in the fall of 1993 as a 50th wedding anniversary gift for my aunt and uncle. They treasured this painting and proudly displayed it in their home until they died. The painting was returned to me, and it proudly hangs in my art studio.

To create the painting, I took the original army jacket, placed a small American flag in the pocket and hung it on a wall hook in my studio. I created a detailed pencil drawing of the jacket, placed the drawing on Arches watercolor paper and then painted the images in transparent watercolors.

I wanted the viewer to focus on the flag and the patch with Wayne’s name on it.

How did you develop the style seen in your “American Hero” painting, and what other painting styles or art mediums have you explored?

I was born and raised in the small rural town of McClure, PA, which is about six miles away from where Wayne lived. During my college years at Kutztown State College, I discovered the work of Andrew Wyeth. I loved his rural landscape scenes and still-life images of Pennsylvania and Maine. For the past 45 years, I’ve painted primarily in transparent watercolors and provided demonstrations of my techniques to various art groups.

Since retiring, I decided to explore another media: woodworking. After participating in the Thos. Moser Furniture Company’s Customer-in-Residency Program in Maine, I used this knowledge to design and create one-of-a-kind pieces of furniture that incorporate wood and metal.

How has your move to the North Fork impacted you as an artist?

Moving to the North Fork in December of 2020 has definitely changed the way I view things as an artist. The large bright skies and vast open land with fields, farms and vineyards are inspirational to me. Light has a huge impact on my new landscape paintings.

Approximately a year ago, my wife, Linda, and I decided that we wanted to work together, collaboratively, on some large canvases. These canvases (6’ x 4’) were much larger than either of us were accustomed to painting. We decided that the large open North Fork landscapes would be perfect images for these large paintings.

To date, we have completed five of these and have plans for five to six more. We collaborate on the image, the original sketch and our painted interpretation of the landscape in acrylics from multiple photos of the location.

During the painting process, we paint simultaneously on all parts of the canvas and discuss what is working and what needs to be altered to create a uniformed artwork.

Linda and I met in college, graduated with a teaching degree in art, taught 30 and 33 years in the Brentwood School District before retiring in 2014. Since that time, we have started an art business, Hartman Studio 44, creating artworks to display and sell at various art shows. Until last year, Linda and I have never painted on the same canvas or developed a piece of art collaboratively.

What art accomplishment or accolade are you most proud of?

I’m extremely proud to have had one of my watercolors, titled “Boston Sewer,” accepted into the National Watercolor Society’s Members Exhibit in California a few year’s ago. I’m also proud of the recent three-page Newsday article on our collaborative acrylic paintings that appeared in “Act 2” on Sunday, September 10, 2023.

What do you find most rewarding about being an artist?

I love the personal challenges of creating something unique and interesting. Also, it’s very rewarding when others respond and appreciate my artworks.

Would you like to share any closing thoughts or info about upcoming exhibitions?

Linda and I will be exhibiting our artwork together in January of 2024 at the BAFFA Art Gallery in Sayville. The title of the show is Hartman Studio 44 Retrospective: Wood, Watercolors, Fiber and Paint. Our show will feature my watercolors and wood tables, Linda’s unique fiber assemblages and fiber/acrylic landscapes, and our large collaborative acrylic North Fork landscape paintings.

To see more of Scott and Linda Hartman’s art and to stay in the know about their upcoming shows, visit hartmanstudio44.com.