Gulf Coastal Life

"A Day at Ono", oil on canvas, 30" x 40"

I don't think the timing could have been better for the above piece. Commissioned by a dear family member, the above painting depicts my patron's grandchildren playing on the beach of Ono Island, an island located at the mouth of Perdido Bay (which is off the coast of the Gulf of Mexico) and coincidently the exact beach where I spent many Summers with my family. In the wake of the horrible Oil Crisis that is threatening this glorious way of life as I and so many others know it, it was nice to focus on a composition that truly honored what living on the coast is all about: Family.

When I think about those Summers I think of playing with my siblings and cousins (I've mentioned before the tradition of the 4th of July) all day in the sun (okay, to be honest, me being the one with the pale skin I went back and forth from the beach to the house, usually kicking and screaming about having to re-apply sunscreen every hour..sigh) making up games on the beach, eating lunch on the wharf, and finally crashing from pure exhaustion and content later that evening (and usually dragging a heaping amount of sand into bed with me). To depict all of that in one painting was a fun challenge (ignore the oxymoron here, please) and the only way I could think to truly capture "a day in the life" was to paint the children in action. I am honored to have been asked to paint something so dear to me and this family, and hope that even if the oil does arrive to our beaches soon, at least this piece can be a reminder of what is so glorious about the Gulf Coast.

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