Beginning about the turn of the Twentieth Century, Earl W. Oglebay worked on his property, remodeling his home and grooming the landscape until it became the showplace country estate that we see today. Upon Oglebay's death in 1926, the property was willed to the city of Wheeling, West Virginia to be used as a public park, one of the finest city-owned parks in the country. This estate is so beautiful and well maintained that it has become a choice subject for artists over the years. I recently visited the park to set up a portable easel, and worked for about three or four hours on a study in oil on canvas in prepartaion for larger paintings in the future. I finished the painting of the mansion in the studio and couldn't resist adding the carriage and horse, and people in turn of the century clothing to give life to the scene.
The artist doing on-site study of Oglebay Mansion
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