Peaches

This is a painting I created in a highschool painting class. I took a picture out of a magazine and recreated it in acrylics. The picture was purposely blurred, which made for a great effect in the photo. My painting teacher showed me that when choosing images to paint it's best not to choose photos like this because the same effect doesn't translate in paintings as well as it does in a photo. Looking back on this, I can see how much I've grown as an artist in the past seven years.

Mr. Branch Rickey-- Baseball Phenom

My last semester in college I took a class called Jackie Robinson: Race and Sports in America. It was a great class. I learned all about the life of Jackie Robinson and the contributions he made to society. A key player in the Jackie Robinson story was Branch Rickey. Rickey was the owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers who made the decision to sign JR to his team in the late 1940s. At that time there were no Blacks in major league baseball, which made Rickey's decision a huge historical landmark. He saw something in Jackie that no white man was willing to see at the time. He gave him the hope and courage to persevere past all the racism and bigotry that was going on in the sport of baseball at that time. Jackie is quoted saying many times that had it not been for Rickey's unwavering support towards him and his family, he would have never lasted in the major leagues.

In one of the books we were reading I saw a picture of Branch Rickey that really caught my eye...so as the queen of procrastination I started sketching it during one of my study sessions. After continuing this during several study sessions to follow, I ended up with the picture you see above. Not many people know who he is or what he looked like, so here he is 

Sketching was the original way I started developing my artistic abilities as a child, but my focus has since moved towards painting. It was fun to experiment and get back into it.

Fishing at the Beach

At the top left is the painting I created as a final project in my painting class. The assignment was to create one painting out of four canvases--these are 16" x 20"each--creating a 32" x 40" masterpiece. We all chose artists that we liked and recreated their work.

I chose Shari Erickson's "Mending," which is the painting see on the right. I wanted to do a tropical landscape because it reflects my Caribbean roots. Also, I wanted something that would have lots of bright color and value contrasts so I could practice my mixing ability. It is both complex and imaginative in a way that was perfect for my painting style. And beach scenes are always beautiful!

I intended it to be for my mother because I knew she would appreciate it, but it's too big to fit on any walls in her house. I got the four pieces pinned together and put into a pretty gold frame so it looks more finished. I'll find it a home here soon because I absolutely love it.