Local painter opens exhibit at Altavista Area YMCA

His son's middle school project was the impetus for Rodney Laughon's painting.

On Monday, Laughon, who lives in Lynchburg, said his son's project involved painting a mountain on a big poster board.

"I looked at it and said I didn't think that it looked right," Laughon, who was in his late 30s then, recalled. So, like most moms and dads do, he helped his son with the work.

He doesn't remember what grade his son received, but the schoolwork led to Laughon studying art, going to art supply stores, visiting galleries and museums, and giving painting a try. Laughon is a self-taught artist.

Today, Laughon turns out scenes of mountains, streams, meadows and landscapes that create enjoyment and a sense of peace for the viewer.

Laughon, 60, was in town Monday to hang an exhibit of work at the Altavista Area YMCA. He has about 20 oil paintings on display in the athletic center lounge. All of them are landscapes. That's what he does.

"I tried to do pears, apples and still life paintings, and it's not me," he said.

The YMCA exhibit is open to the public.

The artist, who retired after 32 years as an industrial service technician for Columbia Gas, said he loves the mountains. The Peaks of Otter and other scenery in Bedford County often end up in Laughon's work. He said he likes the quietness and atmosphere of the Blue Ridge Mountains, sometimes misty and sometimes clear and crisp.

Laughon is one of the founding members of Blue Ridge Plein Air Painters, a group of artists who go out together and paint on location. He said the group tries to get out once a week.

Laughon said he also takes photos and makes sketches of things he wants to paint.

"I'm always riding back roads and looking for places." He said when he comes to Altavista, he usually takes the back roads because what he sees one day might look totally different the next because of changes in lighting.

Each of Laughon's paintings has a bird somewhere in the work. He said it was something he started doing when he was painting with watercolors; now it's become a habit.

Laughon, who is currently teaching a landscape painting class in Lynchburg, has art displayed at galleries in Lynchburg, Smith Mountain Lake and Raleigh, N.C. His art has previously been on exhibit in Charlottesville and Richmond.

He's pleased to have work on display in Altavista. He said his uncle, Lloyd Laughon, was a longtime mail carrier out of the Lynch Station Post Office. His father's family came from the Bishop Creek Road area and, in his job with Columbia Gas, he worked at Abbott Nutrition, BGF and Klopman.