"I left my heart in Stuart!"

 I've been contemplating painting a series of small canvases using "Stuart" Florida as my theme. I'm anxious to get back into my encaustics once more and I'm feeling like a mixture of acrylic, oil and encaustic images might be the place to visit. 
  I truly love the familiar and welcoming places I've found in this wonderful little city. My walks and explorations of downtown and drives to surrounding ocean towns have given me peace and serenity. You know how sometimes there's that unsettled feeling going on inside of you that you can't really explain? Like left over unpleasant business you haven't dealt with or just a worry  you can't put your finger on. Well that goes away when I'm in some of my favorite places in Stuart. For some reason I'm able to find peace here that I haven't found anywhere else. I like breathing in the warm breezy night air and hearing the faint music from a nearby bistro. I love the sound of the waves and the sounds of the ocean birds as they skim the surface of the water. I love sitting in a court yard late at night of a coffee house listening to chatter and laughter.  These are just a few of the pieces I'd like to put together.  I never thought of myself as a routine loving person but there's something very comforting and safe about going to the Osceola Grill for breakfast every Sunday morning, followed by a short walk to the green market in the nearby park in the center of town. The flower vendor and I have become once a week, simple, friends who know nothing personal about each other but share the same happy greeting effected by the music, colors and lazy wanderings of people around us.
  I feel a need to express some of these feelings as I'm used to doing on my canvas. I think the thing that I'm not sure of is the imagery of it all. My paintings have never been about the actual image or about the literal message coming from the painting. I like to think of my images as multi faceted. I don't want to illustrate. Mmm, well I guess I'll try playing with these images until it feels right. Sorry for the rambling but then what's a blog for if not for rambling? Thanks for listening!!!