Ballad of the Bayou
Ballad of the Bayou - Poem
We set off early morn
Truck laden with canoe
To a liminal space
Claimed as Cooper Bayou
We rigged our fishing rods
Then reeled in the line
We caught…the sunrise as s(he) kissed
The baycapes sublime
We cast our thoughts
Way back to the Keys
I wonder if my message in a bottle
Will drift your way oh please
Trawling thoughts return to now as we sit in our canoe
Every outdoor adventure a way of getting back to you
The Process
It all begins with an experience. On July 12th 2022, my husband and I spent quality time together and launched our canoe from Cooper’s Bayou Park. The water was flat, the air was windless, and the views were breathtaking. The photograph below was captured during this canoe experience.
Ballad of the Bayou, the painting, was my interpretation and translation of the scene.
Ballad of the Bayou, the poem, explains the thoughts that bubbled up while in the canoe.
I asked myself “why mangroves? Why have I been drawn to capturing these? Links to memory.
Both were created for the 2024 Creative Pinellas Emerging Artist Grant experience.
An art collector has purchased this masterpiece.
