Galapagos on the Mind

So I have been thinking about what I want to create for our show and I am pretty certain it has to be about the Galapagos. I am at the point where I feel like I need to just paint but I want to get some ideas out there and maybe a little feedback first.

Since moving back home to Marblehead from town and from New York before that I have been thinking a lot about living on the ocean. I have always felt a strong spiritual connection with the ocean not only directly from my life but also from my ancestors who came from Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. As corny as this sounds, considering this I was particularly excited for our time in the Galapagos where, I could experience a new ocean and its spirit.

Since we returned from Ecuador I have been doing research about the Pacific, specifically colonialism of the Pacific islands. One book that has been my main resource is ­Lost Paradise: The Exploration of the Pacific by Ian Cameron. It is more of an anthropological look at the early Pacific Islanders and Spanish Colonialism but it has helped to give me direction.

So taking all this into consideration I am planning on creating a series of landscapes that I would like to illuminate the idea of “first-contact.” For me this means the first sighting of land and all that will ensue when that boat lands. I feel that this directly relates to our visit in the Galapagos because of its delicate ecosystem that is highly valued compared to many other Pacific islands that were terribly exploited. I am not totally positive where this will go once I start painting but I feel like it is a good starting point.

So any feedback or criticism based on this idea would be greatly appreciated!