Lighthouses were his passion. He called them the “Vanishing Castles of America”. Sadly, these beautiful marine castles are disappearing, often abandoned or destroyed. It was the hope of Alfred LaBanca to rekindle America’s passion with lighthouses through his beautiful watercolor paintings. The Collection is arranged by state and we hope you can find YOUR favorite light.
Our sailing friends will find many of these lights very familiar. With over 50 years of racing his family sailboats, Sandpiper, Hustler and Live Wire, and cruising in many parts of the world, Al personally used many of his subject lighthouses as navigational aids. After dark, the audible rumble of foghorns and misty illumination from the beacons were always a comfort.
In addition to the United States, LaBanca painted a number of international lights, quite often after returning from a sailing trip. The LaBanca Lighthouse Collection has over 250 paintings. What a pleasure for Al and his wife of 57 years, Joan, to travel around the country, personally visiting most of these lighthouses. We hope you enjoy viewing this wonderful collection and perhaps think of Al LaBanca when you see a lighthouse.