Summertime in South Florida

I don't know about you, but I am ready for summertime. Yes, South Florida becomes a hot and humid environment, and the sand is so hot you can burn the bottom of your feet. BUT, the ocean comes alive beckoning me to cool off. The tourists and snowbirds have all returned home. The locals roam. It is almost as if the seasonal change brings an entirely new part of the tropical life. My summer field work can be buggy; although, I value my alone time with little interruption. Maybe I just enjoy the slower pace heat brings. There is something to be said for being still or at least moving slower. I think we become more present when we are not stretched in a zillion directions. Of course, mindfulness is my consistent antidote.

As I am looking forward to the swimming weather, my Oceanana portfolio is really coming together. Since I am such a stickler for presentation, I am creating 15 BW's and 15 Color prints that will be for sale individually and as a portfolio encased in a bound linen book(10 editions) . This has been a great portfolio to work on since I wrote a new course curriculum for those advanced tween and teen artists wanting to create a body of work, use as an application portfolio for the local Art Schools/programs, and for those wanting exposure into the process. I do offer this for adults as well.

HERE'S TO SUMMER:

Ocean Landscapes Coming Into Being as a Portfolio

Gulf of Mexico #2, Captiva Island, Florida      Sarah Brown



Since the Gulf Oil Spill, I have retreated to the Atlantic and the Gulf  to remember all those wonderful childhood memories that I have growing up miles from the beach. For me, these two bodies of water are significant because they hold only good memories. One's of family together, of playtime, and of innocent times I had long forgotten. So, as my proofs of all kinds of Ocean Landscapes amass, I know it is time to create a final selection of images for final printing. This, my teacher self must say, is a very important part of the production. I believe our work begins a final transformation into being at this stage. On the occasion, some may just be discovering what the body of work is truly about. Freud would have a field day!
So from proofs to small prints to final prints can be a long process; art school allows for a faster (demanding) pace of production; the working artist may take longer partially out of maturity and patience and part out of time constraints from daily demands.

I will be sure to share some of my final image selections before I write more on final printing stages!