"It's a few days before Christmas and both the house and shed are appropriately decorated. The temperature hovers around zero. The moon is breaking through the scattered cloud cover casting cool shadows across the snow. Grandpa has just arrived with a trailer full of wood and Grandma offers another child her special hot chocolate. She had better have plenty on hand because, as careful observers will notice, three visitors approach on the distant road. 'Hot chocolate can certainly take the chill off a winter's evening.' the artist comments, 'but we all know that being part of a family, and having friends in the neighborhood, is the real warmth in one's life."

" Collectors tell me they often put themselves in my art. It's a way we all can relive some of the happiest moments of our youth."

Dave Barnhouse recreates the best of times in his definition of rural and small town America. His portraits are glimpses of life the way he remembers it from his childhood. Barnhouse is a self-described "country boy" from Richmond, Ohio who grew up in small towns and connects physically and emotionally with those environments.

Barnhouse's work captures the Americana genre, as he works with illumination and adds a nostalgic touch to give viewers the feeling they are actually present and part of the painting."