Rosa Parks, 9x12 Graphite Drawing

On December 1,1955 in Montgomery, Alabama Rosa Parks refused a bus driver's order to vacate a row of four seats in the "colored" section in favor of a white female passenger who had complained to the driver the white section was full. She was arrested and subsequently became central to the year-long bus boycott in Montgomery. In her autobiography, My Story, she said:

"People always say that I didn't give up my seat because I was tired, but that isn't true. I was not tired physically, or no more tired than I usually was at the end of a working day. I was not old, although some people have an image of me as being old then. I was forty-two. No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in."

^Carmen

Frederick Douglass, 9x12 Graphite Drawing

Continuing my series of Civil Rights heroes, here is my rendering of Frederick Douglass, who escaped slavery and became a leader of the antislavery movement. He was a great writer and an orator who was much in demand. In describing his childhood, he wrote this:

    "The opinion was also whispered that my master was my father; but of the correctness of this opinion, I know nothing...My mother and I were separated when I was but an infant. It is a common custom, in the part of Maryland from which I ran away, to part children from their mothers at a very early age....I do not recollect of ever seeing my mother by the light of day. She was with me in the night. She would lie down with me, and get me to sleep, but long before I waked she was gone."

What an amazing spirit he had to overcome beatings, dehumanization and loss of his mother to become one of the most respected intellectuals of his time. He credited finding faith in God when he was a teen with bringing him out of his despair.

Harriet Tubman, 9x12 Graphite Drawing

The amazing Harriet Tubman escaped slavery and returned to rescue 70 enslaved people, including her family, via the network of activists and safe houses known as the Underground Railroad. During the Civil War she was the first woman to lead an armed military operation in the country, the raid on Combahee Ferry, in which over 700 slaves were freed.

To borrow from Shakespeare: "Though she was but little, she was fierce."

Carmen

 

Rainy Day in Boston, 11x14 Oil on Canvas

My sister took this photo and asked me to paint it. It was like a jigsaw puzzle. I try to be looser, but I can't help myself.

Carmen

Surfspray, 24x18 Original Oil Seascape

I really enjoy painting waves with a lot of action. I always loved reading seafaring tales when I was a kid. As an adult, I have only been on ships twice, and both were in storms with waves much bigger this. There is nothing romantic about seasickness. I am quite content seeing the beauty of the surf from the beach. 

Carmen

 

Dragonfly, 6x8.75 Original Watercolor Painting

You can't say I don't do a variety of artworks. This is watercolor on a paper that is very textured and fun to paint on. I got it at Derek Gores Rocky Water Mercantile on Highland Avenue in Eau Gallie, where you can find art supplies and a wide assortment of unusual items.

Carmen

Bailey, Dog Portrait 11x4 Original Oil

This is my son and daughter-in-law's Goldendoodle, Bailey. When I saw this photo, I had to paint her.

Carmen

 

Too Much Caffeine, 5x7 Watercolor and Ink

 

My Pieces of Eight painting group was challenged to create something real and something unreal with a favorite cup. This is mine.

Carmen

Heart of the Zinnia, 12x12 Oil Painting

The centers of Zinnias are so interesting. I grew some beautiful Zinnias this year, and after many distractions, interruptions, and the holidays, I finally got this painting finished.

 

Carmen

Snowy Farm, oil painting

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This was the scene one morning at our daughter's home in Pennsylvania. There's nothing like morning light and long shadows.

Carmen