Starfish

I caught a starfish this week for the theme Star. It was either this or go the celestial route. I do actually have a manger scene on Christmas day. And you know what had a staring role!

Here's what I had to say for the fluid theme...

Something is fishy around here.  But it's not my entry for Friday Fish Fry  (click to enlarge) It is perfect for the fluid theme.  Not a loosey goosey interpretation like usual.  My mermaid is obviously floating in water.  And the way she is painted is very fluid or liquid.  Especially her arms.  I guess she doesn't have bones.  All the better when it is time to fillet her.  For shame! And there is another thing that makes this more fluid. I usually use references to aid in my painting.  If I'm drawing a monkey I look at a photo of a monkey. And so on and so on.  But this was completely off the top of my head.  It is very unusual for me to paint like that.    

I painted this one way back in the day.  I've been slowly scanning some of my old, older and oldest images over time.  And I still like this one.  I love the swirly water and vibrant color.  I actually used a fabric paint for the hair.  And I used more textured papers back then.  Nothing fishy about that.  

Just fun.

Mermaid Me

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I went fishing in my vast cyber ocean and hooked Mermaid Me. It is my choice fillet for the www.illustrationfriday.com mermaid theme. Self portraits are so much fun to do. I think we all have so many sides (or fins) to ourselves.  I don't exactly swim like a mermaid.  But my love of the ocean goes back to when I was 5 years old and saw it for the first time.  I grew up far from any ocean on a boring farm in Wisconsin.  Well, now I think of it as a scenic area of rolling hills and bountiful crops.  But back then it was one dull day after another.  Until our first trip to Florida.  Magic!  It has been a love affair ever since. 

 I've done some serious shelling on Sanibel Island.  Put my tanned paws in the silky sands of Siesta Key.  Sat with Sea turtles on the black sand of the Big Island.  Snorkeled with the fishes in Belize.  And most importantly boogie boarded in Dominical, Costa Rica.  I definitely have a little bit of mermaid in me.  Even though I often sport a life jacket.  A little girl pointed at me after bike riding along the lake this Summer.  I was still wearing my helmet.   She pointed and said to her Mom, "Safety Girl"  Yep.  That's me.

Safety mermaid artist girl to the rescue.

Passion Fruit

I feel a certain amount of passion for a good mango.  Not a Minnesota mango.  But an ugly black spotted but perfectly ripe one picked right from the tree and purchased for peanuts.  I ate a mango just like that in Costa Rica this month.  Thank you Uvita farmer's market.  I paired it with a fried egg sandwich. The bread for that was purchased from a snooty french bakery in Ojochal.  The eggs were bought in a store.  But when you taste them you know they are snatched from chickens that live the pura vida lifestyle.  Well, obviously I enjoy a good breakfast.  And when you eat it on a warm morning by the ocean in Costa Rica it's all the better.

Passion is the www.illustrationfriday.com theme this week.  I painted this years ago.  In fact, the passionate fruit admirer is part of an advertisement.  I don't use images like that anymore.  The melding of woman and ocean is all me.  My favorite part is the mango that is a sea urchin.  Hmmm, come to think of it that is one culinary delight that I have yet to savour.  Someday...maybe.

Under Water Art

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I have a lot of underwater scenes to choose from in my illustration fish tank.  But I thought this self portrait was a good choice for the www.illustrationfriday.com theme underwater.  I'm taking matters into my own hands and giving my reef home a fresh coat of paint.  Someone has to do it.

Swim With The Sharks

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"Don't make me angry.  You wouldn't like me when I'm angry." The sharks are angry because they have been forced to eat blackened fish.  Blackened by an oil spill that is. 

I did this piece after the gulf oil spill.  Thank goodness sharks are swimming in relatively clean waters these days.  If a person can be happy that sharks are swimming at all.  Da dum.

Swim is the theme of the week over at www.illustrationfriday.com

I've got mad skills!

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I've been making a splash in the art world for quite awhile.  O.K., maybe just a ripple!  But I thought my self portrait Mermaid Me was perfect for the www.illustrationfriday.com theme talent.

It shows me using my painting skills.  I'm adding some color to my ocean lair.  I finally used the word lair in a sentence.  Nice.

I got to pretend I was a mermaid in Belize this winter.  We did a little snorkeling. And we got up close and personal with giant sea turtles.  It was one of the most amazing experiences I've ever had.  But one of the turtles started swimming towards me.  Da...dum.  Da...dum.  DadumDadumDadum.

 I learned that I was no mermaid after all.  I awkwardly tried to twist and flail out of harm's way.  It didn't work.  The turtle thumped into me.  Of course I was unharmed and exhilarated.  But later on the boat I found out that darned turtle took a big poke at me. Tastes like tourist.  Not fish.      

Florida 101

There are a lot of people I've run across in life who don't care for what Florida has to offer.  But I always say that if you don't like Florida you just aren't looking hard enough.  We love the white sand beaches, peaceful Cypress trails and abundant Winter wild life.  The first shot is one of our favorite parks in Naples.  We always try to walk and enjoy a few picnics here.  Sungren park

The view at Naples beach. Or I should say one view of thousands.

I had a visitor below my beach chair.

I was sitting on a bench in the heart of Corkscrew Swamp and look who snuck up behind me.

An Egret wading in the swamp. 

A curious Owl.

A maze of gulls.  Or amazing gulls!

Butterflies fluttered at the Rookery Swamp Trail.

And turtles sunned themselves.

Weird colored sea birds at Lover's key.

We threw this live shell back after a photo op.

Feeding Giraffes at the Naple's Zoo is not only for the youngsters.  Florida.  It's what's for Winter!

P.S.  This FLA post has been simmering in my drafts bin for quite awhile.  It is going to be 100 degrees in Minnesota today.  Hotter than a Florida swamp in Summer! For more photos visit the Sunday Best blog hop!

Separated

  

The theme of separate over at www.illustrationfriday.com could be interpreted in so many ways.  But I selected a completely new and terribly old piece for it. (click to enlarge) It is brand spanking new to my blog.  But painted in 1998.  The land and ocean blend together but are two separate things.  My favorite part of the painting is the merging of the mangoes in the bowl with a sea urchin.  Given my love of the jungle and ocean I'm surprised I haven't painted more pieces like this.  But tomorrow is a new day...