Looking for some new inspiration, painter Alain Kieny decided to use historical photographs his wife collected as material for a new art project. “Almost Heaven” is Kieny’s success at drawing from these old photographs rich with historical meaning.
Even though his professional talent is apparent in the beautiful renderings in “Almost Heaven,”Alain Kieny considers himself a hobbyist. “I’m not a professional painter, but I like to make some artwork once a year,” Kieny said.
He does not consider himself a professional painter “Because I only do it for my own enjoyment, and I like to show it to people, but I don’t earn a living from it.” Kieny worked on “Almost Heaven” without the intention of monetarily profiting from his efforts.
“Almost Heaven” is not Kieny’s first crack at painting. He has had a variety of showings in the local area. Kieny did not receive formal art training, but you would not be able to tell by viewing his art.
“I don’t work everyday, but it took me quite a while,” he said in reference to the painting. Approximately four months to be exact. Kieny mentioned that he recently tends to work on larger scale projects. This painting is a 55-inch square.
Originally from Leyon France, Kieny has lived in Tucker County for 30 years. “Mainly I’ve been living in West Virginia for most of my time in the United States,” he said. His wife had ties to the county, and he wanted to go see a smaller place in the country. So they landed in Parsons.
His process to complete “Almost Heaven” began at the top. With a large canvas, artists usually start at the top of a painting, so they do not smear the paint as they work their way downward. He sketched all of the different sections, and then overlaid the sketches with pastels. “It’s very time consuming, it’s a slow process,” he said.
“Almost Heaven” displays a collage of five different historically significant images representing Tucker County. Kieny decided on the combination of images, because, “I think it’s all tied together with the county and what makes it special and beautiful.”
“I like the combination of all of them, but I am really happy with the bottom part, which is the river,” Kieny said. The view of the Cheat River from the St. George bridge inspired the bottom portion of the painting. In the painting you can even see the old abutment that still stands in the river.
The image in the center of the painting is a bakery scene from a Thomas Coal camp. At the top of the painting is a rendering of cranberry pickers in Dolly Sods. A blacksmith is represented in the painting as well.
The rendering of the “Biggest Event in Town” poster that adorns the top right portion of the painting was inspired by a lucky find in Kieny’s own home. While working on his home, he discovered an old piece of poster board under the linoleum floor. The poster was an old advertisement that read “Biggest Event in Town.” He is unsure of what event the poster advertised, but he speculated it might be for a travelling show.
The painting is currently hanging in the Courthouse Annex building on the second floor next to the County Clerk’s Office. “There’s no set date for how long it will be there, but I would like it to be there for about a year,” he said.
