Monroe County Courthouse, Clarendon, AR

Monroe County Courthouse

8X10, Oil on Panel

SOLD

I was recently invited to the town of Clarendon by the wife of the mayor to do some painting.  Clarendon is in the Delta of eastern Arkansas and is smack dab at the confluence of White  and Cache Rivers.  

Clarendon suffers from the same ills as most of the rest of the Delta: lack of industry and jobs that drives the young to the cities.  There is a great wealth of farming in the Delta, from soybeans, rice and still some cotton, but not enough jobs associated with that industry to sustain the communities.  Still, some people know what these communities used to be and are doing everything that can to save them.  Clarendon recently was awarded a matching grant for beautification of the downtown area.  They also hope that a change in how the Cache River channel is managed will improve fishing and bring more commerce to the area.  I hope so too, the town still has charm but may not for much longer if the decline cannot be reversed.

I took quite a few pictures while I was there and hope to do more from Clarendon in time.