A big thank you to the talented Kim Workman for sending the gallery these 5 particularly beautiful small paintings, based on gyotaku fish-rubbings. I truly enjoy telling visitors to the gallery about her technique, but the superb quality of the work is what makes them shine.
As most of you know, two of my great passions are great food and great art. Imagine my wonderment when the two are combined. I was tickled by the watermelon sculpture at the buffet at Zemi Beach today. DEEEE-lightful, as was the particularly delicious breakfast spread…
New and beautiful paintings are arriving these days from Anguilla-based artist Jo-Anne Mason. She and her husband Chris are doing a lot of sailing around the region, and her take on various anchorages has been really quite lovely. These two paintings, “Almost Dark” and “Returning at Sunset” illustrate my point.
GREAT vibe at Jacala yesterday. Sunday there can be so much fun, with great friends, and maybe a tad too much table hopping on my part. I savored both specials yesterday – started with a vegetable and feta terrine, then segued into a dazzling shrimp risotto….. Every bite was perfection!
Round the Island boat race yesterday to celebrate Anguilla Day. The still shots are mine, and I thank my neighbor Tommy Hodge for this incredible drone footage of the race as it heads past!
I found this wonderful quote of the artist in reallife magazine, a publication about Caribbean design and culture. It’s at the end of the article, and Stafford says this about his work “somewhat akin to surrealist philosophy…to be interpreted in the mind’s eye, rather than the actuality of physical involvement”. I thought it was a profound
sentiment as I installed these two new works in the gallery, “Fishing Village”, and “Roses, Hibiscus and Wine Bottle”. Both such beautiful and evocative gems.
DELIGHTED to hang this Romel Balan “Tree of Life” in the gallery. I’ve always shown the unpainted metal works from Haiti. I respect the brightly painted ones, and love this particular sculpture because the birds in the tree are lightly painted. A hybrid of sorts!
A strange schedule prevailed yesterday, did not bring my little lunch to the gallery, and landed up the west end in the early afternoon. LUCKILY, I landed up at Spice of India and had a truly delicious late lunch. Tried something new, called Kadai Chicken, which was one of the most truly
flavourful meals I’ve enjoyed in a while. I asked to make it spicy, and was delighted!
Ms. Workman knocks it out of the park again, with these 3 gyotaku-based paintings. All superb, but I am drawn incredibly
to “Mahi Madness”. Once again, the artist creates “rubbings” using fish from the sea, then builds on that original image with a variety of media. Exquisite.
Ms. Mason’s nautical adventures have led to some really fine paintings. I love this one, “Old Buoys in the Sunset”, 
and also adore the poetic prose written by the artist on the back of the painting!
