GOLDMINER'S DAUGHTER

THis image was painted for Ballantine Books, back in the day when I was doing my covers in oil on panels. My aim in this image was to create a believable, real-looking scene, that gave the girl an heroic presence. Much research went into the tools, equipment and clothing of the miners, there wasn't much to go by for the girl's costume. I imagined her as a beauty, surrounded by hard men in this desolate place. No when I look at it, I'm reminded of Clint Eastwood's Pale Rider. I don't know if I had seen that film at the time, but there is some similarity to scenes in that movie.

I photographed models in black and white in a studio and painted them into my landscape. I believe I used photos i took while visting my brother in British Columbia, but much of the scenery was made up.