By Ben Shattuck '03

"We have preserved those fundamental high traditions of character and scholarship on which our school was founded, and none of the vital things which have given a feeling of permanence and security have been lost or changed. We still study and work, play and sing, and pause to look up to the hills."

This gilded quote above the fireplace in the Main School Building reminds Deerfield of the quintessential image of Frank Boyden's Deerfield. These words provided the inspiration for Art Department Chair and Visual Arts teacher David Dickinson's painting that now hangs above the same fireplace in the foyer of the Main School Building.

The painting, frame included, measures 6'8" long and just over 4' high, and was commissioned by Headmaster Eric Widmer in honor of Mr. Boyden's centenary. Because of rigid physical restrictions on the size and Mr. Widmer's desire to include key aspects of the campus, much of the landscape had to be slightly collapsed. Although Mr. Dickinson had sketched and studied the lower level for a prospective composition, Mr. Widmer felt adamant about having the painting replicate the view from Mr. Boyden's desk out towards the hills. The hills, however, seemed a bit anticlimactic to Mr. Dickinson, forcing him "to take the high road and show a real sweeping view of the western mountains."

To grasp such a vision, Mr. Dickinson essentially took his perspective from atop the roof of the Main School Building. Mr. Dickinson used an impressionistic pallet and let much of the under painting show through to give a traditional, timeless quality to capture not only the view, but also the feeling of the "Boyden days."

As Mr. Dickinson will need to update the painting with the addition of the new science center in the coming years, the painting, though done in oil, has been sealed only temporarily with a retouch varnish. After finishing the painting ahead of schedule, Mr. Dickinson felt very confident with his work. As a client, Mr. Widmer was pleased with the outcome and ordered the installation of a light so the painting can be illuminated for the all those who come to "look to the hills."