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Ambler, PA

Eddie Flotte: Ambler, PA

I grew up with my parents and four sisters in the small factory town of Ambler, in Montgomery County Pennsylvania. Ambler is a borough nestled along the Wissahickon Creek just outside of Philadelphia. The streets of Ambler were crowded with kids of all ages. We played touch football and kick the can, in the streets as a way of life. In the winter, sledding down the middle of steep snowy streets was an epic event.

Everyone was connected either through family or neighborhood. My sisters and I lived within one block of twelve first cousins. We went to the same Catholic grade school together with a few of us in every classroom. My father was both musical and artistic. He saw my interest in the arts at an early age and was eager to pass on his creative know how.

While Ambler was a busy and rough paced town, we spent our summers and our weekends with our grandparents in the rural outpost of Center Square. Our life there was ideal. We flew homemade kites and drank lemonade from shiny tin cups of assorted colors. Winters we skated on the frozen creeks.

Everything about Center Square was of a time gone by. The paint was chipped; the upholstery and wallpaper were worn and faded. It was a world of cut glass and crochet doilies. The drawers and closets were filled with nostalgia. Pathways of time were visible across the kitchen linoleum and hardwood floors. It was there we did our first watercolors.

With the encouragement of a few key people, I got myself into The Hussian School of Art in Philadelphia. Hussian was a highly competitive commercial art college. My focus was on illustration. My influences were Norman Rockwell, Andrew Wyeth, N.C. Wyeth, and Maxfield Parrish.

I moved into the city and lived in the artistic renaissance community of South Street. I began working. I painted signs, murals, and commissioned pieces. I illustrated books, magazines, and record covers.

Click any image to access details about each painting.

Painting by Eddie Flotte: Ambler Inn Ambler Inn
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Ambler News Agency Ambler News Agency
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Ambler Paper Boys Ambler Paper Boys
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Ambler Police Station Ambler Police Station
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Ambler Train Station Ambler Train Station
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Boiler Erection and Repair Boiler Erection and Repair
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Boiler Plant Boiler Plant
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Brenneman and Brady's Drug Store Brenneman and Brady's Drug Store
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Broadaxe Tavern Broadaxe Tavern
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Chuffo's Alley Ambler Chuffo's Alley Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Church Street Ambler Church Street Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Crossing Into Ambler Crossing Into Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Deck's Hardware Ambler Deck's Hardware Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Del's Steaks and Hoagies Ambler Del's Steaks and Hoagies Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Fort Washington Crossing Fort Washington Crossing
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Girard Trust Bank Ambler Girard Trust Bank Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Harris' Department Store Ambler Harris' Department Store Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Keasbey & Mattison Ambler Keasbey & Mattison Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Keasbey & Mattison South Ambler Keasbey & Mattison South Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Lindenwald Terrace Lindenwald Terrace
Painting by Eddie Flotte: McDermott and Sons Shoe Repair McDermott and Sons Shoe Repair
Painting by Eddie Flotte: McFarland's Bicycle Shop McFarland's Bicycle Shop
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Old Whitpain School Old Whitpain School
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Orange Avenue Back Porch Orange Avenue Back Porch
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Park Avenue Ambler Park Avenue Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Reedy's General Store Reedy's General Store
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Ridge and Butler Ridge and Butler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Ridge Avenue Pigeons Ridge Avenue Pigeons
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Rosemary and Water Rosemary and Water
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Rutherford's Rutherford's
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Saint Anthony's Ambler Saint Anthony's Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Saint Mary's Ambler Saint Mary's Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Sons of Italy Ambler Sons of Italy Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Southern Avenue Ambler Southern Avenue Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Spring Garden and Orange Spring Garden and Orange
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Spring Garden Street Ambler Spring Garden Street Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Stormy's Dam Stormy's Dam
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Sunray Drugs Ambler Sunray Drugs Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: The Ambler Theater The Ambler Theater
Painting by Eddie Flotte: The Bottom of Main Street The Bottom of Main Street
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Wright's Corner Store Ambler Wright's Corner Store Ambler
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Wyndham Front Entrance Wyndham Front Entrance
Painting by Eddie Flotte: Wyndham Hotel Ambler Wyndham Hotel Ambler