On the Water paintings in my February 6 -March 3, 2023 Solo show at the Village Art Galleries in Tequesta, Florida are a curated collection around the theme of water. The attraction to water is universal. Whether we just look at it, hear the sound of waves, swim, play or boat in it, all of us want to have that water experience.
I’ve always been drawn to bodies of water. Growing up on Long Island, I went to the beach year round – even when it was empty in the winter. The beauty of the ocean and the Long Island Sound made a deep impression on me. I started painting the beach from Long Beach to Montauk when I was very young. Then, New York City became home for most of my adult life. I’ve painted New York Harbor, the East River, the Hudson and the lakes & ponds of Central Park in every season. There’s joy in water.
Living on the water for the last two years since moving to Florida has given me the chance to really experience looking at water and life on the water all day long, everyday. It’s an inexhaustible well of inspiration. The changing light and color and the moods of people boating or their absence is my subject in these On the Water paintings. Beyond beauty, there’s an emotional or spiritual energy that water inspires in me that’s hard to express and to capture. I want to convey that feeling to the viewer.
Frequently I’ll work from life but since water and weather are so changeable, I also use my drawings and watercolors as sources for on the water paintings. Traveling gives me a further opportunity to do watercolors that I use back in the studio. I especially like working from memory and sometimes will first make a sketch, but often I just trust myself, pick up my brush and see what surprises appear on the canvas. The freedom of working that way seems in tune with the freedom I feel on the water.