When I first started to paint, the objective was to select vastly different subject matter, in an effort to develop my skills. The Breakwall introduced me to waves with whitecaps, stones, sand and trees….all new additions to “my repertoire”!

I grew up on the waterways near Jamestown Island and Surry, Virginia, explored by the very first settlers to come to America: the York, the James, the Chickahominy Rivers…all lead to the Chesapeake Bay or the Atlantic Ocean.

And while I love the mountains, not being able to see the horizon for more than a week at a time is an issue! When I moved to Northern Ohio, Lake Erie was my salvation; it was the Ocean without the salt. When the wind is out of the North/Northwest, surfers and wind-surfers ride the waves; artists search for tumbled bits of glass and shells. Then, when the wind shifts from the South, Lake Erie becomes a placid pond, ideal for boating and fishing. But the erosion is a real issue. So there are seawalls and breakwalls everywhere, and the Lake deposits or erodes sand according to the lateral drift.

This breakwall is at Huntington Beach….one of the Cleveland Metroparks’/Emerald Necklace sites.