My happy place is at the ocean, watching the waves roll, crash, saunter, and dance their way to the shore. I love to paint anything and everything having to do with the ocean including waves, the shoreline, rocks in the water and the sky and clouds above the sea. When I’m not traveling, which COVID has certainly squashed, I split my time between Boston, MA, my adoptive city of almost 35 years, and Southern California, where I was born and raised. I grew up near the water, was an avid scuba diver throughout my 20s, and have always loved the ocean. I began painting about five years ago and in addition to being passionate about it, it has truly made this time of COVID and quarantining bearable. For lack of a better word, I feel like painting has saved me during this unstable time in our history. I honestly don’t know what I would have done with myself if I couldn't paint during this time. I’m so grateful to have found pastels and to have the freedom to paint the beauty I see around me. This painting was from a wave photo reference I took in CA but I painted it with the Caribbean colors in mind. I love how it glows. However, my favorite part is the sky which is incredibly luminous with its purple and turquoise values. The entire painting looks like a fine piece of jewelry to me.