TRANQUILITY
near it, smelling the ocean, feeling the sun on my face, reflecting from the sand on the beach. I yearned for the freedom, joy and excitement I have always experienced near the water. But of course, as everyone else who was landlocked and locked down in Colorado, I could not go. So, I decided to paint it.
What is it about the sea you find particularly moving?
I never get tired of the ocean. It is always changing, never standing still. For an artist, the subject is fascinating because there are a million shades of blue, from aquamarine translucency shimmering in the sun to deep indigo purple in the depth on the horizon.
There are so many things to observe, to memorize, to paint, that I can literally come up with dozens of paintings just standing in one spot on the beach. But, personally, the minute I get a whiff of that briny air it never fails to lift my spirits and give me joy and hope for the future. The ocean is eternal, it is vast and it is life-giving. What else can be so endlessly fascinating?
What do you hope your seascapes add to the interiors of patrons?
It is my wish to convey on canvas what I feel when I look at the ocean, which is joy, love, a feeling of freedom and hope. Collectors who have purchased my seascape paintings have told me that every time they look at the painting, they feel their spirits lift. Some have said that they find another part of the painting they never have noticed before — whether they realize that the foam on the waves is actually not white, but a rainbow of rose, aqua, butter yellow and blue, or they notice a rock under water they have not seen before. It is these discoveries over months and years of owning a painting and the beauty of nature depicted that people love. And who wouldn’t want a little bit of the ocean in their surroundings?
You usually travel to the ocean at least once a year. Were you able to go during 2020 and do you have any plans this year to explore a coast?
Unfortunately, I was not able to visit the beach in 2020. But, this year I was able to go for an exploratory trip to the South Coast of Mexico. It was heaven. I painted and sketched on the beach. I brought back so many ideas, it will take me years to explore them all on canvas. I can’t wait.
And, there are more trips to come, from visiting the California coast in a few months, to staying in South Carolina for a week or two next year. I always have a few coastal trips to look forward to — barring another pandemic — knock on wood.
What themes or techniques are you exploring in your work currently and what can we expect to see at your one-woman show at Mary Williams
Fine Arts in Boulder?
For the past two decades I have been primarily a still life painter.
But since the pandemic, I have expanded into seascapes, as well as landscapes. Most of my landscapes these days have water in them, as that is an endlessly fascinating subject to me.
I am very excited about my one-woman show at Mary Williams Fine Arts in November. I have been with the gallery for over two decades and consider it to be one of the best for representational work in the area. I will have a selection of the works I made during the past two years — the still lifes, which I am known for, but also landscapes and seascapes which my collectors have really appreciated recently.