G.O.O.D. Memories…

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animal, animals, aquarium, art, beach, beach house, beachy, blue, bright, coastal, coastal decor, coastal living, coastline, color, colorful, colorful animal art, Colorful Art, colors, cottage, cute fish, decor, fish, fun, happy, hippocampus, horse, kids, marine life, nautical, nursery, ocean, oceanic, primary, primary colors, red, scuba, sea, sea horse, seahorse, seahorses, snorkeling, summer, summer vacation, surf, sweet, swimming, tropical, tropical decor, tropical fish, underwater, waves

“Colorful Seahorse”

Mixed Media Art

Sharon Cummings

2014

I know today is all about 911 and that most people will be talking about that horrific event in American History.  It is burned into my memory mainly because I had a little girl in kindergarten at the time and I can recall vividly rushing to her school with all of the other panicked moms.  Hugging my Muslim friends who had removed their Hijabs out of fear of attack.  It was indeed awful.  Explaining that to a child was beyond comprehension.

So today I take you back to my kindergarten year and good memories that I hope will make you smile on this day.  I grew up the first half of my childhood on Siesta Key, FL.  We did not have an ocean view as we were not wealthy, but a very modest home on one of the side streets.  Right next door was a fish market that would smoke mullet all day.  When bored, I would wander over there and if I smiled cutely, they’d give me a sample of their fish.  It was so yummy.  But what I remember most is that they had this vertical fish tank in the corner of their store.  It was filled with tropical fish and mainly seahorses.  I was so intrigued by how they swam with such small fins.  I would watch them for hours.  One day I noticed one of the very “fat” seahorses was making jerking motions and much to my delight he was having babies!!  I squealed with so much joy that all of the customers rushed over to look in the tank with me.

I remember the proprietor asking me if I wanted a little tank of my own with some of their seahorses to care for.  I did, but then I thought about it and decided i didn’t.  It was much more satisfying to sit and watch the fish over there and besides, I wouldn’t get free seafood goodies at home. 😉

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Paradise Found

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amazing sunset, beach, beach combers, beaches, bradenton, bradenton beaches, bradenton florida, california, clouds, coast, coastal, coastal living, daybreak, diving, florida, hawaii, honeymoon, landscape, landscapes, lido, naples, night, nightfall, north lido, ocean, resort, sarasota, sarasota beaches, sarasota florida, scuba, scuba diving, sea, seascape, seascapes, set, sharon cummings, siesta key, sky, snorkeling, summer, sun, sun rays, sunset, sunsets, surf, surfing, tropical, tropics, vacation, venice, water

 

One of the things I love most about living in Florida is the easy access to the most beautiful beaches in the World.  I have made Tampa my residence for over 25 years, but Sarasota is my home town and it is where my heart wonders when I need to calm my spirit.  It is about an hour drive from my house to Lido Beach and I can tell you it is well worth it.  There are closer coastlines, but none can compare to this tropical oasis.  It truly is paradise!  I recently took my daughter on a getaway to Lido Resort and this is the sunset that kissed us goodnight the first evening.  Enjoy!

See more here:

 http://fineartamerica.com/featured/sunset-in-paradise-beach-photography-by-sharon-cummings-sharon-cummings.html

Clownin’ Around…..

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aquarium, aquariums, art, Artist, beach, beach art, beaches, clown fish, faabest, fish, florida, ocean, photography, sarasota, sarasota florida, sea, sharon cummings, siesta key, siesta key florida, snorkeling, summer, summer vacation, tropical, tropical fish, underwater life

I have been drawing and painting fish for as long as I can remember.  Growing up and living in Florida has allowed me to see a variety of marine life up close and personal.  I have spent many hours at local beaches swimming and snorkeling.  For years my family lived next door to a fish market on Siesta Key in Sarasota.  Every day I would go over just to watch the fish swim in the huge aquarium they had on display.  I particularly loved to see the clown fish.  That burst of orange contrasting with the white and black is one of natures finest masterpieces.  Yesterday I was interviewed for a feature and one of the questions was:  What inspires my art?  And my answer was that it was an accumulation of my life’s imagery.  It’s no wonder my portfolio is filled with the ocean…

Learn more about my aquatic dreams here:

http://fineartamerica.com/featured/into-blue-tropical-fish-by-sharon-cummings-sharon-cummings.html