New: “Above the Cliffs”

For three years, I lived on Martha’s Vineyard, year round. In any season, inspiration was unlimited, as the Island is one of the most scenic pieces of land you could discover. And as you would expect of any Island on the New England coast, lighthouses are plenty. I’ve painted the lighthouse at East Chop, West Chop, Edgartown, but never painted the most iconic of all the Vineyard’s lights…the Gay Head light, in Aquinnah. A few years back, it was rescued from the edge of the famous clay cliffs, and a documentary on that process brought back memories of having lived in Aquinnah (the westernmost point of the Island, called Gay Head when I lived there). The town is perhaps one of the most visited tourist locations, as the historic (and protected) clay cliffs are a geological marvel. Though you can’t see them in this piece, they erode like any coastal area, and that process put the light at risk. Moved back, and now secure, the light is safe for (they say) quite a few years. “Above the Cliffs” 36 x 36