13

Florida. May of 1988

There’s a certain therapy for me in the state of Florida as after a long winter of cold, snow and ice, the idea of warm sand over my toes completely covers my thoughts. Consequently, Judith and I soon found our selves at St. Petersburg Beach (Tradewinds Hotel) with ten days rest and relaxation our assignment, Armed with a love of the ocean, and birds, the wind and beach, and with my magic markers of course, we set off on ten days with no plans..

During those days nothing, and everything, happened. This time was magic with mornings taken up with sketching, Judy at the pool. We met up before lunch and spent time just talking, being together, then set out for lunch upon the patio overlooking the beach. The restaurant had the largest vodka tonics I've ever seen. There is a canal that runs through the hotel and around a small island where people

can go to have picnics. We spent a great deal of time there because of the birds. On the island is a small bar called Reflections and each night a guy named Gene came to play the piano. The island was my favorite place because it was so calm. I'd made about six days sketches when I met George in Reflections. I'd decided to take markers down to the bar and make sketches while people listened to Gene play the piano. It was Friday night and the place was filling up when I noticed another guy doing the same thing. He turned out to be a fellow

named George, who owned a graphics business in Denver and was in town for a meeting the following Monday morning. George had been drawing and doing watercolors for years

and we quickly hit it off. Shortly, George and I were drawing pictures of the patrons and giving them to those who would accept them. This was a great time. I'd done

this before at Muldoons and had decided public work caused more trouble than it was worth, but now there was this guy George, sitting across from me, doing the same thing and we really had a good time. Judith went off to bed and I remember George leaving about an hour before the place closed.

As for me, well, I found my self-diving into the dark warm water of the hotel pool, about 3AM, with at least a thousand drawings on my mind, having learned more in one night than months in the studio.

I didn't see George again as he'd checked out for his meeting Monday morning, but painting him from the sketch done at Reflections just brought back so many good memories. George, thanks.

The following five pieces are from works done at the Tradewinds in marker, translated in studio to oil. They represent various experiments in technique, as I was at the time of their execution continuing on with VanGogh and heavily into Henry Matisse. I've tried to use what I've learned

from others while making these pieces mine by giving them feeling.

FLORIDA (1988)

WINDOW VIEW (1988)

WOODEN BRIDGE (1988)

PICNIC (1988)

GEORGE (1988)