Water, water, everywhere. The abundance of water is a big part of what draws me to the Pacific Northwest. Here we have rivers, sound, sea, alpine lakes, streams, waterfalls, the mighty Pacific Ocean, all within reach.

Some of my favorite childhood memories happened around water– time spent at my aunt and uncle’s lake house in Florida continue to influence me as an adult. It was there that I spent mornings and afternoons– always a break for lunch and then a “rest” before more swimming, my aunt was a firm believer in that whole no swimming an hour after eating, much to my childhood frustration– in the cool, dark water. 

 

For nearly a year now (the longest I’ve yet to spend focused on one series), I’ve been painting ECHOES, my abstract interpretations of what happens above, beneath, and upon the water’s surface. When we would go out exploring, I was finding myself taking photos of the water itself, instead of the scene as a whole.

I was fascinated by the way you could almost detect a sense of another landscape in the reflected surface, but it was often distorted and abstracted by the angle of view, ripples in the water, or fog upon the surface. 

It’s these abstractions and distortions that most fascinate me. I’m not interested in an exact replication, but what I find happening is that the more I look, the more I see, and the more it pours out in the work.

You can see the latest of my ECHOES paintings on my website. I’m starting on two large canvases this week.  I can’t wait to dive in!

All images by me.