As a third generation Miamian, I literally grew up around the Everglades, spending much of my time there with my father, grandfather and great uncle. The Everglades gave me an appreciation for environmentally sensitive areas. I have had the experience of living in some of the most beautiful and endangered areas in the United States. In addition to the Everglades, I have lived and worked in the Blue Ridge areas of Appalachia, the desert regions of Arizona, New Mexico and Western California, as well as Salt Marsh areas of the Atlantic North East. These places have an almost mystical meaning for me, place’s that I have been blessed to have had the opportunity to experience first hand.

I have always had he ability to draw what I can see, to reproduce the image as I see it to paper. It wasn’t until I attended an Art Festival in Coconut Grove Florida, that I began to take art seriously. It was then that I started to experiment with painting, mostly oils, but some acrylic and pastels also. Being able to paint, came about in much the same manner as I am able to draw, painting came to me in a similar manner. It took some time to get the blending and colors where I wanted them, but eventually a “technique” began to take shape. I have followed that ever since, which is pretty much unique to me.

These areas, the “Glades”, the Salt Marshes, the Blue Ridge, and the Desert Southwest are often stark, yet truly magnificent place’s that offers truly dramatic colors, even if they only last for seconds; and vistas that seem endless, They are timeless, unique, and fleeting. It is a concept I attempt to capture with each painting.

My father was so taken by the stunning ability of George Buckner to capture, not only the look, but the feel of the Everglades on canvas, that he bought a piece. It is to my knowledge the only piece of art he ever bought, which to this day my mother still owns.

I was intrigued by his art and the artist, and over the next few years I became casual friends with George. It was this association that led me to put my own experiences on canvas of the mountains, desert, and marshes, a vocation I have pursued for some 20 years.

Recently, on a vacation to the Alaska, I was awed by the magnificent landscape and harshness of the environment. This is another area we are in very real danger of losing to greed and mismanagement of our resources. As I have attempted to do with work on the areas of Florida, California, North Carolina, Virginia and Arizona, I may look at painting this stunning eco system. Perhaps someone else will be inspired by the beauty of these places, and with luck, our children’s children will be able to experience and appreciate what we have been blessed to see.

Hope springs eternal.