"June Lilacs", 16x28, oil on hardboard (note: click on the image for better detail)
A few summers ago, the hubby and I took a trip in late June up to a favorite haunt of ours- Monhegan Island, Maine. We took the ferry from Port Clyde on a foggy, cold morning and I fervently hoped I wouldn't get seasick, as I have been known to do in the past. But the hour long ferry ride is so worth what awaits you when you get to the island!
Monhegan is a painter's paradise, and of course I had brought my paints. After dropping our luggage off at the beautiful Island Inn, we took the customary walk up the hill, breathing in the brisk, though refreshing salty sea air, and admiring the usual array of new perennials in the garden at Carena's. We had never been there in June before and as the scenery there is constantly changing due to the weather patterns, I drank in the new vegetation against the familiar backdrop of houses.
The red poppies looked especially vibrant that day against the rest of the environment, muted as it always is until all the fog burns off. The lilacs were also in full bloom along the path, and the usual array of stray cats were there to greet the new ferry arrivals.
I am not typically an artist that prefers muted scenes, but I choose to try to capture this one, because it is so typical and beloved of those mornings on Monhegan when the air is full of atmospheric perspective, and that tiny island feels ever so other-worldly and mystical.
This painting was painted on a heavy hardwood. It needs a sturdy frame to support it (see below)and I hope it will become a happy fixture in someone's home who loves Monhegan Island as much as I do. Thanks for visiting my blog!
This painting won Third Place at the Venice Art Center's "Branchin' Out" exhibit.