I paint Coastal America from the Chesapeake to Matanzas Bay

 

In 2003 I began capturing the vanishing land and waterscapes of the Delmarva Peninsula in paint.

Lately I have been focussing on North Eastern Florida which has a similar vibe to my Eastern Shore home.

 

In the middle of the last century bridges were thrown across the Chesapeake, and the interstate highway system pushed through the palmetto scrub & swamps of North East Florida, forever changing the culture of both regions - eradicating a remote, slow-paced and unique way of life in less than one generation.  

 

I once intended my paintings to be a testament for my grandchildren and their children, so that they could know what magical places these were.  But I have discovered that my work resonates with people who love these places, grew up in these places, remember these places. I do festivals & shows and talk to people about what they remember: a piece of shoreline or a particular lighthouse or family member's worked-out bateaux pushed way up some creek to moulder away.

 

I do a lot of commission work: people bring me old photos, or ask me to paint a certain piece of water, or a legend with which they grew up.  It's a great feeling to bring back a memory for someone.

 

I prefer to work on wood panels.  My work is almost an engraving process.  The drawing is incised into the soft wood with ballpoint pen and then topped with acrylic paints and spar varnish resulting in a fairly indestructible piece of artwork.  (I have lost paintings out the back of the pickup, they just kinda slide down the highway.  Adds character, I am told).

 

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My work is available at my studios in 

Elkton, Florida. and Sudlersville, Maryland. 

 

Support our farmers.  Support our watermen.  Resist development.  Buy local. 

And just slow down and smell the honeysuckle.