Gulf Coast Winter | 9×12 | Oil on Linen Panel

Inspiration for Gulf Coast Winter

I began painting Gulf Coast Winter en plein air during a particularly mild winter in the Florida panhandle. If my memory serves me, the temperature at Pensacola Beach hovered around 75 degrees that day…in January. Perks of living in the Sunshine State! I’m regularly amazed by the variance of color within the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Based on weather and time of year, these shallows can range from incandescent pale green, to brilliant blue, to very dark gray…with a wide range in between! You can see some of these differences by comparing this piece to a previous painting, Gulf Surf Plein Air.

Santa Rosa Island: A Barrier Island

I’ve long been interested by the particular type of geology that composes Pensacola’s beaches. The beach, along with beaches of several other municipalities, help compose Santa Rosa Island, which functions as a “barrier island.” Located around the world, barrier islands act as a buffer between the mainland and the forces of nature. Barrier islands usually occur in chains containing from just a few islands to more than a dozen. Subject to change during storms, they absorb energy and protect the coastlines, creating areas of protected waters where wetlands may flourish. Read more about barrier islands on that fount of all knowledge, Wikipedia!