First Snook
16" x 20"
Acrylic

Giclees available
through Fine
Art America
(see link)

This is a portrait of my grandson showing off the first snook that he had ever caught. It was a beautiful day on Sanibel Island to do a little surf fishing.

Honeymoon Island
Watercolor
10" x 20"

Giclees available through Pedlar's Child
Art Gallery.

Honeymoon Island is my favorite beach. It is a protected wildlife area and therefore left undeveloped for the most part. There are only four buildings on this beautiful stretch of beach.

Honeymoon Island, a barrier island, is now a State Park made up of 385 acres of pristine nature off the coast of Dunedin, Florida. The gulf side of the beach is about four miles long and has virgin slash pine and mangroves along St. Joseph Sound. The island is protected from development and only has four bathhouses along the beach – one of which is depicted in my painting of Honeymoon Island.

It was first inhabited by the Tocobagan Indians and was later populated by Spanish explorers, pirates, traders, and fishermen in the sixteenth century. Artifacts such as skeletal remains, pottery and chains have been found on the island.

In the 19th century, some attempts were made to homestead the island with little success until a hog farm was started on the island and it became known as Hog Island. In October 1921 a hurricane hit the island and split it in two with Hurricane Pass cutting between the north and south parts of the original island.

However, by the 1940's, the unattractive name was changed to Honeymoon Island, since it had become a popular destination for newlyweds. A businessman from New York by the name of Clinton Mosely Washburn had purchased the island in 1939.

He, together with Life Magazine, Newsreel, and the Clearwater Lions Club, began a contest for newlywed couples where the winners would spend their Honeymoon on the island. One hundred sixty-seven couples won a stay and came down to Honeymoon Isle. They stayed in one of the fifty thatched huts built on what was then the main beach area. World War II ended the honeymoons and the island was then used for a rest and recuperative retreat for factory workers.

One Thirty-Five
Watercolor
16" x 20"
Original is in a private collection. Giclees available.

There are many wee cracker houses in the little town in Florida where I live. Many have been torn down to make room for McMansions, but there are still a number of these wonderful little houses. I am trying to do paintings of them from time to time to preserve the history of what life was like. Recently, there has been an increased interest in tiny homes however. It is my hope that these little cracker houses will be recognized for the treasures that they are.
The term, 'cracker' is used locally to denote a person that is a native-born Floridian. It is not considered to be a derogatory term, but rather a term of great respect. Most of the population of Florida consists of people who moved here from other states. Crackers were born here and are proud of that fact. It is said the term originated from the sound of the cattle ranchers' whips crackin' as they moved their herds. I didn't realize that Florida actually has a lot of cattle. It isn't just all orange trees and beaches.

Poling the Flats
Watercolor
16" x 20"

Original is in Private Collection. Giclee available.

The transparency of watercolor lends itself well to the light airy atmosphere of tropical settings. This fisherman is poling the flats off the coast of a Bahamian island. A few years ago I crewed on a yacht sailing from Providenciales in the Caicos Islands up through the Bahamian chain of out islands. In this painting I tried to capture the feel of the salt air, the ever-changing hues of blue in the out island waters. The people I met along the way were mostly poor and hard-working with a deep understanding of nature and the rhythms of the sea.

White Heron
watercolor
16" x 20"
Original has been sold.

I have always had an interest in birds of all kinds. There are many very beautiful white herons that live in the estuaries not far from my home. I tried to capture the essence of the moment as this bird perched watchfully waiting - serene - yet alert.