Narragansett Bay

One of my deepest paintings yet, Narragansett Bay stands alone as a reflection of my journey as an artist. This piece is pure emotion, an embodiment of bold abstraction that pushes beyond the expected. I began this piece based on a photograph of Bristol, Rhode Island, but quickly realized that a literal painting wasn’t enough. To make it my own, I had to stop looking at the photo and start looking at the emotion behind it. I originally painted the sailboats with a brush, but soon recognized it didn’t feel like my art. It was too literal, too distant from my true voice. For it to be mine, it needed more boldness. More uniqueness. I returned to this piece months later with a palette knife, the one tool I cannot paint without. By layering the boats with loose, deliberate strokes, I was finally able to capture the uniqueness I was looking for. Subtle bits of texture emerge across the surface, adding depth without overpowering the composition. That shift alone transformed the painting into