A Productive Couple of Weeks

Wow! I had a very busy and productive couple of weeks.  I hosted the opening reception as the featured artist at the Dancing Crane Gallery in Bradenton, Florida on April 4th. I hung one of my largest seascape paintings (The Cove - 36”x72” acrylic on gallery wrap canvas) for a 4-month display in the Bradenton Financial Building. I completed 3 new paintings and listed them for sale on my Etsy website: www.alanzawackifineart.etsy.com. And, I was interviewed for an online radio show that features local Florida artists.

The Dancing Crane Gallery show will run through April 25^th. I sold several paintings on the night of the reception and had to backfill the empty spaces on the walls with other paintings -- not a bad problem to have.

The Brandenton Financial Building partners with the Dancing Crane Gallery to display selected artists work on their walls. All are for sale. Here is The Cove:

I managed to stay “in the zone” for an extended period of time to complete 3 acrylic seascapes:

Just One More - 11"x14" original acrylic tropical seascape on canvas board framed in a 2" wide rustic white wood frame

Discovering Trunk Bay, St. John - an original 16"x20" acrylic Caribbean seascape on gallery wrap canvas

Churning Waves - an original 12"x24" acrylic tropical seascape on gallery wrap canvas

Lastly, I was pleased to have the opportunity to be interviewed by Dona Lee, who hosts an online radio show about local artists, called Culture Coast. The 30-minute podcast will be aired on radioearnetwork.com on Thursday, April 24^th at 2 PM. After that, it will be archived in their lists of podcasts.

I hope everyone had as good of a couple weeks as I did.

Have a great one this week,

Alan

The Beauty of Caribbean Water

I love to create paintings --all kinds of landscape, seascape, and still life subject matter. But, I find myself always coming back to painting WATER --- clear, blue/green/turquoise, Caribbean water.

There is something about Caribbean ocean water that makes me feel good. Maybe it’s the pleasant memories of the people, the warmth, or the laid-back island life.  

Growing up in New Jersey, I frequented the Jersey Shore. I always had an affinity for the ocean – swimming, surfing, boogie boarding, and just lying on the sand. Yet, as beautiful as the ocean was there, I find that nothing can compare to Caribbean waters.

I continue to take pleasure in creating paintings that show-off the mesmerizing colors and feeling of the ocean, bays, and coves found in the Caribbean.

Here are two examples of those type of creations. The first is called Rendezvous Bay Shower – a 16"x36" original oil over acrylic on canvas painting of Rendezvous Bay on the Caribbean island of Anguilla.

The second is, Heavenly – a 24"x48" acrylic on gallery wrap canvas that portrays the warm sun shining bright and glistening over the varying blues and greens of shallow crystal clear turquoise water.

Both paintings can be found on my websites: www.alanzawacki.com or www.alanzawackifineart.etsy.com

Have a great week!

Plein Air Painting in Jamaica

I recently returned from a working vacation to Negril, Jamaica. I can never get enough of the Caribbean. And, this island has it all; friendly people, beautiful scenery and great beaches.

I think that Jamaica sometimes gets a bad rap when it comes to safety and security. Although, the Caribbean islands have their share of poverty, I find that’s also true of mainland USA. There are many places in any city in the US that I would not want to be walking down the road alone.

That said, Jamaica has a wide variety of beauty and rich culture. And, the jerk chicken is to die for!

I brought some acrylic paint and canvas boards with me on this trip. I always use acrylics when traveling because of the ease of transporting on a plane and the easy cleanup. I set my easel up on the beach one calm and sunny morning to capture the tranquility of the bay as the sun rose in the morning sky.

I put together a short video of my plein air session on this warm Negril beach.

Enjoy.

Holiday Greetings

It’s been a very busy couple of months since my last blog post --- with the artist reception at the Sarasota Orchestra Harmony Gallery Solo Exhibition, preparations for hanging the Players Theater Featured Artist Exhibition, the Players Theater  artist reception, creating and delivering a commission painting for a client, and doing some plein air painting as well.

This past year has been an exciting growth period for my art career here in Sarasota, FL. Moving here 2-1/2 years ago from Pennsylvania has been one of the better decisions that I’ve made in my life. This morning, as I write this note, I see that it is 14 degrees in Philadelphia and while it is starting out at 66 degrees on its way to 83 here.  It has not only offered plenty of opportunities to paint outdoors year-round with the Light Chasers Plein Air artist group but also has presented me with great new friends and colleagues.

My family and I feel very blessed.

 I wish you all a very happy holiday season.