Field of Dreams, the Blue Jays at 50

 

12 x 12", acrylic on gessoed aluminum panel

painting #312, 2026, black wood frame with a 1" white linen liner

Some paintings take months and sometime years in the making; others arrive simply. The spark for this piece was ignited last fall during the dramatic heartbreak of Game 7, when the Toronto Blue Jays went deep into extra innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Standing on the precipice of a World Series title, the country watched as a 9th-inning lead evaporated, culminating in an 11-inning, 5–4 loss. Yet, despite the defeat, a profound shift had occurred. The Blue Jays did something rare that gradually developed during their entire post-season run. In a deeply divided world—they kind of brought an entire nation together. Even though no Canadian actually plays for Toronto, the team's chemistry and the pride they displayed for the only franchise in our country was so awesome. The sheer joy that the players showed on and off the field truly cemented this roster in the hearts of fans from coast to coast. The morning after that bittersweet game, I walked into Canadian Tire and bought this pristine Rawlings baseball.

The purchase felt even more resonant given the milestone on the horizon: 2026 marks the Blue Jays' 50th anniversary. Earlier this spring, coming home from Europe, we managed a quick two-day stopover in Toronto and caught the May 11 opener against the Tampa Bay Rays. Even though they dropped the game 8–5, the energy inside the stadium was electric. We watched Kevin Gausman collect his 2,000th career strikeout, while Andrés Giménez hammered a career-high two home runs in a single game. What struck me the most was the attendance—39,336 fans packed into a stadium at 4:00 PM on a Monday afternoon in early spring. The love for the game was palpable. In a strange twist of baseball fate, those same Tampa Bay Rays just clinched their spot yesterday to face the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2026 World Series.

I've only played a bit of baseball during my youth, but the game never truly left me. I still recall the Blue Jays winning the World Series in 1992 and 1993, and following the Montreal Expos during my teens and as a young adult. Another enduring affection belongs almost entirely to Phil Alden Robinson’s 1989 cinematic adapted from the magical-realist novel Shoeless Joe by the late Canadian author W.P. Kinsella. Field of Dreams is my all-time favorite movie. I was 27 years old when I first sat in the dark of the Riverview Mall Cinema with Suzanne. By the time the final credits rolled, the film had completely wrecked me. Driving home that night, I was bawling so hard I could barely keep my eyes on the road. Decades later, the morning after the Jays lost Game 7, that same emotional gravity pulled at me again. I went online to ThriftBooks and tracked down a used copy of Kinsella's original novel.

Click to play trailer

I began working on this panel in August, often painting with the television playing in the background as Toronto battled through a tight wildcard race. One quiet evening, flipping through channels on a light sports night, I stumbled onto Field of Dreams just as it was starting on TSN. During a completely ordinary scene, the background score caught me off guard, instantly tugging at my heartstrings until my eyes welled up. A quick search revealed why: the film’s sweeping, emotional score was composed by James Horner, the same brilliant mind behind Titanic.

Immersing myself further into the story, I listened to the audiobook of Shoeless Joe and discovered a narrative far more intellectual and complex than its Hollywood film. In the book, the protagonist Ray has an identical twin named Richard who is entirely absent from the movie, and the ultimate reconciliation belongs to this estranged brother who fled home at sixteen. Furthermore, the reclusive writer Ray kidnaps isn't the fictional Terence Mann, but the notoriously private J.D. Salinger, the author of Catcher in the Rye. When Salinger, found out that his name was attached to this book, he was none too pleased, so to avoid a lawsuit during the screenwriting, a fictional substitute took his place.

Just reading the synopsis, the storyline seems kind of farfetched. W.P. Kinsella openly admitted that reading Phil Alden Robinson's finished script brought tears to his eyes. He recounted saying to himself, "This is my own work doing this to me. How can this happen?" He deeply admired how beautifully written it was, particularly because Robinson managed to protect the core integrity and emotion of the story. Field of Dreams is widely considered one of the greatest film adaptations of all time. Screenwriter and director Phil Alden Robinson achieved something rare: he took a novel that was deeply intellectual and magical-realist, and translated it into a screenplay driven by pure, raw emotion. It would receive three Oscar nominations, including best picture and adapted screenplay.

It is without a doubt that what makes this film emotional for me is the father-son relationship. If I possess an ounce of manual or artistic talent it is a direct inheritance from my father. My father could practically do anything manually. He could figure out how things work and was great at problem solving. He valued craftsmanship and aesthetics. I remember him turning a replica of the Stanley Cup on a lathe from an antique oak baluster for me. He also used my grand-mother's sewing machine and made me a duffle bag for my hockey equipment. It had a drawstring (army style), made out of canvas and sewed a handmade C-H Montreal logo in the front. One of my father’s most enduring legacies is a simple piece of advice that has stayed with me throughout my life: "When you start a project, finish it."

My dad was 37 years my senior, and the generation gap between us was wide. He was a short man, just five feet tall, a relentless worker who never exercised or walked for pleasure, yet he possessed guns for biceps and the chest of a natural bodybuilder on a slim built. We viewed the world through entirely different lenses—I grew up shaped by many more opportunities presented to me and the wonderment of television; he was shaped by a starker, harder era. By the time Field of Dreams came out, he was 65 and his body was already breaking down under a myriad of ailments. Looking at a photograph of him from around 1950, he was a vibrant young man of 25 or 30. When I was that exact same age, I wanted nothing more than to step through time, meet him as a contemporary, and just bond and hang out with him before life took its toll. Watching Ray Kinsella get his second chance at the end of the film allowed me to live vicariously through that exact dream.

Now, at 64 years old, listening to the audiobook in my studio, a profound "a-ha" moment washed over me. Midway through executing this challenging composition, a breathtaking coincidence came to light: the twin brothers in Kinsella's novel are named Ray and Richard. United, they form my father's full name: Raymond Richard. The painting was no longer just an idea; it felt guided, an absolute inevitability.

My Dad - circa 1950

When I launched this Blog in 2007, it was in response of a then novelty of posting my artwork on-line and connecting with artists who were in the realism realm thus becoming a form of networking. We often shared blog links located on the right column. For the first time, it felt like I was being seen because I could control the narrative and use this platform as an archive. A lot of the artists that I followed started bypassing the brick and mortar galleries and selling their paintings through eBay. While I didn't myself, I did however acquire dozens of amazing works from this community during the following decade.

One of those artists was Mick McGinty. I knew that he was a celebrated illustrator; he had done album covers for famous rock bands and for video games. But he was mostly known for his movie posters of Hollywood Blockbusters. I corresponded a bit with him and would acquire two of his paintings very early on, a still life and a street scene from New York City. It was only when I did the research for this painting that I became aware that he also did the movie poster for Field of Dreams. Sadly, he died of stage IV lung cancer at the age of 68 in 2021 shortly after being diagnosed. In 2020, prior to his diagnosis, he, his wife, his son Jobe with his family visited Dyersville, Iowa, where the setting for the movie has remained and is currently a tourist attraction. Jobe played catch with his Dad!

Field of Dreams Movie poster by Mick McGinty

The backdrop for my own painting is rooted closer to home: CN Ball Field #9 on Rhéal Cormier Drive in Moncton. Cormier was our local baseball titan from Shediac, a legendary left-handed pitcher who spent 16 seasons in the Majors and proudly wore the Canadian jersey at two Olympic Games before he, too, was taken way too early by cancer in 2021.  He was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2012.

CN Field #9, Rhéal Cormier Drive, Moncton, NB

The baseball glove in this painting is also by Rawlings. I bought it when my son Jean-Luc was young so we could play catch together. 

This painting is currently on view in a two-person show with Jon Wilkinson at the Fog Forest Gallery, entitled:

"Still Lives, Silent Places"

October 16 – November 6, 2026 

• Opening Reception: Friday, October 23, 2026, from 4:30 PM to 6:00 PM
• Gallery Hours: Thursdays and Fridays from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM, or by appointment.

To acquire this painting, please contact:
Fog Forest Gallery
14 Bridge Street, Sackville, NB, Canada
(506) 536-9000
fogforestgallery.ca