Bon voyage: Painter chosen as an official Coast Guard artist

Watercolor painter Ron Harrison is no typical retiree.

Instead of spending afternoons playing golf, the 71-year-old is about to begin traveling the high seas, recording the adventures of the U.S. Coast Guard with his paintbrush and watercolors. Three weeks ago Harrison was accepted into the U.S. Coast Guard Art program, one of four people selected to join group of about 200 artists nationwide who help to educate people about Coast Guard activities by capturing scenes from daily life.

“They could say we’re going out to intercept drug runners or something like that,” he says, grinning. “It could be local or it could be out in the Atlantic Ocean. One Coast Guard artist was sent to the Persian Gulf in 2006.”

This will be a big change from the low-key lifestyle Harrison has led since he retired from a marketing career at Nynex Corporation 12 years ago — a life of painting in his studio, walking his dog, Daisy, and enjoying time with his three grandchildren. But after eight years of painting marine scenes for a hobby, he is ready for a challenge.

“I’m very pleased [I got selected],” he said. “A lot of people apply and they don’t accept very many.”

Harrison spent 24 years in the Navy working in public affairs. Three years spent at sea inspired him to photograph ship scenes he would later use in his paintings. He has a fine-tuned eye for the ocean’s many colors and moods, and revels in technical details, capturing Navy ships contours with the patience of a draftsman.

Harrison’s work depicts both modern and old-fashioned scenes in U.S. history, demonstrating his fascination with submarines, aircraft carriers and other ships. One scene of Salem’s Derby Wharf captures the bustling waterfront in the early 20th century when it was lined with tiny merchant shops and warehouses. In another, entitled ‘Get Closer Dad,’ a father and son sail beside a large Navy ship, which looms like a monster out of the waters.

“Since 9-11 you can’t do this anymore,” said Harrison, pointing out that with tighter security measures, small crafts are no longer permitted to get close to Navy ships.

Harrison’s work has been appreciated by art lovers for years, garnering prizes from exhibits across New England, and selling well on his web site, www.ronharrisonart.com. Harrison smiles when he recounts a story of a buyer who e-mailed him asking to purchase a painting of a submarine, the U.S.S. Annapolis.

“I opened the e-mail and it was someone on the U.S.S. Annapolis saying they wanted to buy the painting,” he says. “I said, could you tell me where you are? And they responded, ‘we’re on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.’”

Painting, for Harrison, has always been a therapeutic and self-indulgent. After a day at work he’d come home and dabble in watercolors, often while watching television. He is primarily self-taught, although after retiring, he took night classes in watercolor painting to develop his skills.

Painting for the U.S. Coast Guard will test the painter in a new way. Now, like a Renaissance artist, he has a patron who will be telling him what to paint. He could be asked to paint scenes depicting diversity among crews or to emphasize the Coast Guard’s fight against the illegal drug trade. Does the idea of being on assignment bother him? No way.

As the artist, Harrison points out, he’ll still be in control, holding the camera, snapping photos and choosing which scenes he wants to paint. Though the position is unpaid, he will have the opportunity to travel, for up to three weeks at a time, to faraway places. At the end of the year, his paintings could be selected by the Coast Guard and the prestigious Salmagundi Club in New York City to be displayed in the offices of members of the Congress or at museums and Coast Guard locations around the country.

But for Harrison, painting is about the journey, not the destination. Whether his work gets selected or not, the creative process will always remain a magical experience for him.

“There’s an almost golden moment where you can put one stroke in there and everything seems to come together,” he reflects. “Every time it happens it’s almost like an epiphany — you know, ‘what did I do to make it come to life?’”

The July featured artist at Cornerstone Books, 45 Lafayette St., is Ron Harrison. His exhibit, “From Meadows to Marines to Things In Between v1.5,” will be displayed through Aug. 10. Opening reception is Friday, July 11 at 7 p.m. Admission is free. For information, call 978-744-1831 or visit www.cornerstonebooks-salem.com.