Cheryl Pennington is a retired physical education teacher, who coached girls swimming and assisted with the track program at Skyline High School in Longmont, where she taught for 30 years.

She printed black and white photos in the school darkroom, which inspired her to put a darkroom in her home. Pennington hand paints black and white photos, both hers and historical photos. She began this process after retiring from teaching.

She lives in a cabin in Allenspark, where she has a separate workshop equipped with framing equipment, translucent Marshall photo oils, Marshall photo colored pencils, pan pastels, pastel soft pencils, Q-tips, paint brushes, and cotton balls.

The translucent Marshall photo oils, or simply photo oils, were invented in England in the 1880s because there were no color films. In a digital world, it’s challenging for Pennington to find paper for the translucent oils, so she also colors many photos with pan pastels.

Her craft began 20 years ago when she received a gift from a friend to attend a photo hand-painting class. She had a dark room at home but never hand-colored photos. Little did she know she would illustrate Rocky Mountain National Park’s 100th-anniversary calendar.

While working for the Clatworthy family on remodeling their home in Estes Park, a friend of Pennington’s told the family about her hand coloring. They met, and the rest was history.

The family of Fred Clatworthy, famous in the 1900s for his innovative photography, has generously allowed her to color many of his black and white images. Clatworthy was known for paying women 35 cents to hand-color his photos.

Among her many accomplishments, Pennington has also provided hand-painted photos for various books, including illustrations for covers and history magazines. She has sold images in Broomfield, Nederland, Allenspark, Estes Park, and Grand Lake.

“I really enjoy what I do and am glad to be a part of The Old Gallery in my hometown of Allenspark,” says Pennington. Pennington has taught classes in hand coloring in Estes Park, Grand Lake, and Allenspark.

“I enjoy taking my own photos in black and white, and I often hand color them. The Clatworthy images were often on large old glass negatives; It has been an adventure to scan the plates and see the images,” shares Pennington.

She continues, “The opportunity has increased my interest in history in the Allenspark area and allows me to display and sell the images. The programs and shows in which I have participated have enlightened many to the wonderful contributions made by Fred Clatworthy.”

Hand-coloring historical images is a lot of fun for Pennington, including comparing it to a modern image. Pennington’s plans include “attempting to learn new ways than color.” Though many people today hand color with computers, she continues to do it the old-fashioned way.

Cheryl Pennington’s art is displayed at The Old Gallery in Allenspark. You can find The Old Gallery on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/TheAPOldGallery or you can give Cheryl Pennington a call at 303-747-2761.

Sign up as an artist or sponsor for The Mountain-Ear’s Studio Tour September 22-24, 2023, at www.themtnear.com/peak-to-peak-studio-tour-2023/.