Winter Park Postcard Series - Round Two - plus an ‘aha’ moment

A few years ago I found some vintage Winter Park postcards at an antique store in Deland and used them as a basis for paintings which sold quickly.  I had a couple more ideas I needed to get out of my head before I closed this chapter. As I worked through those, I had an ‘aha’ moment: Available Refreshments. 

Darling I Love You But Give Me Park Avenue II – 49 1/2 x 78 1/2 – I love midcentury modern vibes and I think these colors speak to that. I took a dingy image of old Park Avenue and made something bright and new with it.  

Wish You Were Here – 77 x 49 1/2 – Having fun with my memories of summer vacations when waterski shows were a big attraction. 

Won’t You Be My Neighbor – 75 x 48 – Mr. Rogers would have accepted all neighbors to lush, green Winter Park, complete with their quirks and imperfections. Are the imperfections in this painting ‘mistakes’ or part of the plan? 

Available Refreshments – 73 x 64 – Similar to the postcard paintings, this is a combination of old and new, but unlike those works, this was a very spontaneous creation that came together quickly, almost without having to really think. It just flowed out of me. 

There’s a bit of healthy tension between the Winter Park of old and today’s Winter Park. How does a city support new growth while holding on to the small-town charm and appeal that makes it so attractive?  It’s a delicate balance and not always successful.  We live on an old brick street in Winter Park and it seems like every week in our neighborhood there’s a house undergoing a major renovation, or being torn down to make way for a new build (usually bigger.)  Soon our little bungalow will be dwarfed by the surrounding new builds. Maybe that will make it even more charming?

TECHNIQUE - The base is a sketch of Winter Park lakes on an old vintage drop cloth; I built from there. I like to think about what Winter Park was like in the 30’s and 40’s - what did it look like, what was the feel of it, what was it becoming. The lakes don’t change; the residential footprint does. The grid (a plot of lots available) represents the desirability of Winter Park (location location location) –  and where there’s an open house, there are refreshments!