“Jantzen Beach 1940”

32” x 46” acrylic on canvas, framed

- SOLD -

For decades, thousands of people came to Hayden Island to swim, dance, picnic and play. There were giant swimming pools, carnival rides, a big band dance hall, and a giant roller coaster. Jantzen Beach Amusement Park opened in 1928 and shuttered in 1970. Its heyday years ran into the 1950s. Today, big box stores and parking lots blur any vision of what was there. Based on my research and a collection of old black and white photos, this painting is my attempt to recreate a hot August day in 1940 at the park. It is framed with a repurposed cedar fence frame, painted with a pallet knife to create a distressed look.