Local artist paints Lime Rock Park's history

SHARON —Sometimes, when artist Pieter Lefferts is busy at work in his studio, he’ll turn the stereo on in the corner and let the music play.

“I’ll listen to anything,� Lefferts said as he grabbed a bottled water from his bar — also located in the studio. “Anything from classic rock to opera.�

Sometimes he’ll pick up a nearby guitar, fiddle around with the strings a bit, and play a little Hendrix or Clapton before returning to his easel.

Art and music, the two central passions in Lefferts’ life, have become so serendipitously intertwined that they are, at once, a singular entity: Art and music, rolling off the tongue like bread and butter or milk and cookies.

“Music and art share the same language,� Lefferts said. “The language of color.�

When Lefferts is playing guitar he is expressing color through sound. When he is painting, he is bringing a rhythm and repetition to the canvas.

And if he had to choose?

“Fortunately, I don’t have to,� he said, chuckling as he took another sip of his water.

Since childhood, his career choice has always been a decision between art and music — aside from a brief period at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Ore., when Lefferts was a biology major.

“I’ve always had a scientific mind,� he said, before admitting, “art has really been my passion.�

Lefferts dates his artistic interests all the way back to middle school, when the margins of his mathematics notebook were lined with sketches. His flirtations with the guitar began a little later, when he was in high school.

“I come from a music family. My brother, Hal, is an accomplished musician and my younger brother, he picked up a guitar and sounded like Hendrix,� Lefferts said. “I would say, ‘Yeah, well, at least I can paint.’�

Lefferts refined his skills at the Art Students League in New York, but spent much of the 1990s as a road manager for jazz musician Gerry Mulligan. Lefferts saw the world and met the greatest musicians — including B.B. King, who gave Lefferts a red guitar pick that he proudly displays next to the bar.

But Lefferts began growing weary of the road and longed to establish roots. It was at that point that he decided to make painting his full-time profession.

“It was a leap of faith,� he said. “You have to have a lot of confidence in yourself.�

Lefferts hasn’t looked back since.

“When I’m up in the Adirondacks with my easel and I’m surrounded by nature,� he says. “I think, ‘This isn’t so bad.’ Somebody has to do it and I’m more than willing.�

Lefferts, who works primarily with oil and pastel, has had his artwork featured all over the world, winning numerous awards and accolades. When not painting, Lefferts devotes his time to teaching others, both at the Farmington Valley Art Center in Avon and at I.S. 183 Art School of the Berkshires in Stockbridge, Mass.

“Teaching takes up a lot of time but I love doing it,� he says.

His studio, transformed from a small barn outside his home on Calkinstown Road, is a creative outlet of its own. Odds and ends dot the walls. Paintings, at various stages of completion, are scattered about the room. A rich blue bookshelf, built from the barn’s original wood, holds an array of novels and other knickknacks Lefferts has collected over the years. It is a resplendent visual cornucopia, a work of art in and of itself. Lefferts calls the place “The Dirty Pallet Bar,� in homage of the two old paint pallets, caked with color, hanging at the entrance. It is a refuge for Lefferts. Here he can paint, have a drink with friends, or strum a few chords on his guitar.

His band, affectionately dubbed The Dirty Pallet Band, even used the studio as a practice facility until Lefferts was forced to put an end to it.

“The walls would be shaking and things would be falling off shelves,� he recalled.

Things may vibrate a little less at The Dirty Pallet these days, but they are indeed no less vibrant.

Lefferts is putting the finishing touches on a commemorative painting celebrating Lime Rock Park’s 50th anniversary this year. In the painting, cars from different eras whizz past a portion of the track as eager race fans cheer in the periphery. Lefferts expects to be done by July 7.

Lefferts spent hours examining the race track from various views and speaking with a number of experts, from race legend Skip Barber (the former track owner and owner of the racing school that bears his name) to Rich Taylor, author of the book “Lime Rock Park: 35 Years of Racing.�

“I realize how much people love this place,� Lefferts said. “I’m combining my impressions of talking with people and admiring the cars, with walking the track to study the landscape in order to compose a scene that will tell Lime Rock Park’s story, the thrill of racing and the beauty of the park.�

The painting was commissioned by the track owners in honor of the anniversary year.

Once finished, the oil painting, in a frame donated by Frames On Wheels of Salisbury and Great Barrington, Mass., will be put up for auction during the final event weekend of the 2007 season. All proceeds from the auction will benefit Survive The Drive, the nonprofit driver education program established by driving instructor and former race car driver Bob Green of Salisbury in 1997. The work will be on view during the major events at Locals on the Green.

Lefferts donates several pieces to charities every year. It is his way of giving back to the community.

“I do what I can,� Lefferts said. “I may not be able to give money but I can give the gift of art.�