In 1940 Simon Combes was born in “Wilderness Cottage”, in Shaftesbury, England, and from that day in June, the Wilderness always attracted him. His first adventures began early when in 1946 when his parents moved onto farming Kenya’s Great Rift Valley, a magical place for a young boy.

Simon loathed his years at boarding school in Nakuru and at Duke of York in Nairobi, always longing for the freedom of the bush. While managing a 2,000 acre farm when he was seventeen, he was drafted into six months compulsory military training after already applying for appointment in the Kings African Rifles. He was accepted into 4 KAR but having just finished his training was sent to Uganda where one of his duties was to teach basic etiquette and rugby to a young Idi Amin. Sandhurst Military Academy was next and upon return to Kenya joined 3 KAR in time for Kenya’s Independence.

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Stan Stokes is a California native with more than 37 years as a full time professional artist, who developed a passion for vintage cars, trains and airplanes at an early age. Model building and RC planes filled the many hours of the young enthusiast’s free time. However, unlike most other young aviation enthusiasts Stokes also displayed a great gift for artistic talent. After studying art in College, Stan decided to pursue a career as a professional artist. Stokes initially focused his great talents on depicting uniquely realistic landscapes of the western desert and mountain scenes. More than thirty years ago a good friend suggested that Stan combine his passion for aviation history and flying with his artistic talents, and render an aircraft or two. The rest is history.

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John was born and raised in the small town of Oxford, NC. From childhood, he excelled at drawing and painting. After two years of general college in his home state, he traveled to Los Angeles to earn his BPA degree in illustration from the Art Center College of Design.

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Emily Christensen McPhie was born in Utah in 1978 into the highly-artistic Christensen family. As a child, she toured the museums of the United States and Europe with her family. At each museum, Emily and her brothers and sisters were told they could choose a postcard as a souvenir, and young Emily’s postcard collection quickly filled with early American portraits and Degas’ studies of young dancers. The influence of these museum trips is apparent in Emily’s portfolio of paintings.

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The little farmhouse in Pennsylvania where I grew up was always alive with singing, laughter and a love of the arts. My father, a voice instructor, introduced us to the steady flow of eccentric, larger-than-life characters found in his greatest passion – the dramatic world of the Italian opera. Aida’s rich theme always seemed to be playing in the background as I went in search of a reality I could call my own, escaping into the quiet roar of the singing crickets and song of the meadowlark. I could lose myself in the turquoise twilight magic of a summer evening or breath of sweet fields of winter wheat beneath the rising sliver of a moon. I found my true love and years later found myself longing for the beautiful fields of my childhood, where everything was the way it should be. My passion springs forth through the beauty of the fertile earth, which has always been my real teacher.

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