Pendley Homestead at Slide Rock

24” x 30” | 1986 | Oil on Canvas

In 1985, hearing Arizona State University had acquired Frank L. Pendley’s historic 1910 homestead—now Slide Rock State Park—I painted the house fearing it might be lost. The property always held special meaning for me, ever since I fell in love with a 1912 Oscar Berninghaus painting of Oak Creek featuring Pendley’s early apple orchard. I painted this view standing by the old bridge, a spot now blocked by chain-link fencing. Though that vantage point is gone, I’m grateful the Pendley home still stands today, a testament to the respect this historic site commands.