"Beach dog, Yelapa"

oil 30" x 24"  Winter 2001

        SOLD

"Beach dog, Yelapa"  is the painting that started it all for me.  It's inspired from a random photo that I took my first trip to Mexico.  Here's the story:  I had been surfing the internet prior to my trip with Stella for her high school graduation gift.  I was looking at restaurants and such and happened across the photo of the owner of the La Bariga bar in Viejo Vallarta.  He looked so much like an old friend that I used to work with that we decided to stop by and see if it was so.  It wasn't my friend but our story was good so the owner declared it "ladies night" and Stella and I were gifted free Margaritas and Tequila Sunrises all night.  Naturally, being us, we had lots of fun meeting people and playing pool.  We met several locals that thought we were fabulous ( of course ) and kept telling us about "Yelapa" and what a paradise it is.  They insisted that we come visit the next day.  Being adventurous, we jumped the water taxi ( the only way to get there ) and went to see what their version of "paraiso" was.  Hey, they were right. Yelapa is paradise and don't tell anyone so it stays that way.  We enjoyed the Saturday night disco in the heart of the village.  That required fording the river and hiking through the jungle in complete dark with only flashlights.  Luckily, the owner of the Hotel Lagunita and Gary Thompson, owner of Galleria Pacifico in Vallarta were gracious enough to escort us.  We danced, drank more Margaritas and had the best time.  Our walk home was lit by a fabulous moon which frosted everything with a magical glow.  The next day, hanging out on the beach and waiting for the water taxi back to Vallarta, this stray beach dog decided it liked us and took a nap next to my bags all day under one of the hotels' palapas.  I wasn't really thinking "art" at the time but was stunned when I got back to the States and saw the photo.  I'm pretty sure I poured a fare share of my soul into this painting. I did a complete study in oil pastel first to get the drawing right ( you can check that out on this site ) and then went on to paint it again in oil.  As I painted this piece the realization grew and grew that this amazing intensity to travel in Mexico and paint "her" was taking a hold of my life.  Es mi destino.  D.ita

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