Painting New Orleans Blog

The Allure of the Water

When my wife asked what I wanted for my birthday, I told her that I would love to go to the beach. Weeks later I found myself in Destin, Florida captivated by the clouds over the water, the feeling of the waves on my body, and the soft white sand.  This got me thinking about why I am so drawn to the water. Is it just me, or is there some universal human need to be close to where the water meets the land?  

My attraction to water must be something that I “inherited” from my mother, who has a fairly deep connection to the ocean.  She grew up in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, less than a block from the Atlantic.  Perhaps being this close to the water gave my mom special powers??? She is a certified life guard, she has water-skied with Henry Winkler (aka, the Fonz) and, she can take apart a lobster in a minute flat.  I have not inherited my mother’s swimming skills (I sink like a stone) but I do attribute my superhuman - crustacean pulverizing ability to her side of the family.  I think I also absorbed her love of the beach and water in general; something about it just fills a need.

"The Fonz water-skiing"

The problem for me has been how to take all of my feelings about water and put them into a painting of New Orleans.  I had a bit of luck recently when I was taking pictures on the historic Bayou St. John with thunderstorms on either side of me.  I did my best to capture the lights from historic mansions reflecting on the bayou with the storm clouds massing , the thunder booming and the lightning flashing (without getting struck of course).  When I got home and looked at the enlarged photographs  on the computer screen I swear I got tingles on the back of my neck.  Those photographs are the start of a group of large- scale paintings of Bayou St. John. ---I’m hoping they capture some of that sense of wonder you might find when water and  land come together.

Here is a photo of the lightning,

 This will be a large scale painting soon. Stay Tuned!

Here is a finished painting of that morning.  Original Oil on Canvas "Path Down Bayou St. John" 24" x 36" $720

I have prints of that painting available here for $35---->      http://ahall21.fineartstudioonline.com/workszoom/1814638

Thanks For Reading,

Adam K Hall

www.adamkhall.com