Edmund Moody's Blog
Retrospective
Many times boats need to go into dry dock to repair their hull, get refitted and upgraded for a new journey. The painting above was done in 1964 when I was 19 years old and just starting out as an artist in Tampa, FL. It sold from a gallery in Clearwater, FL soon after completion and the proceeds financed my move to California the following year.
The Boat in Dry Dock
Oil on panel (24” x 30”) 1964
In 2018 I received a call from a man in Nashville, TN saying he was the son of Marjorie Reeves. He was inquiring if I was the artist that had lived in Tampa and had done a painting of a boat in dry dock which his mother Marjorie had bought so many years ago. After answering a surprised yes, he put Marjorie on the phone and we had a wonderful conversation. Soon after purchasing the painting she had moved to Nashville where she was a writer of poems, songs and short stories. This call began a two year plus email correspondence. Marjorie was 90 years old and had just lost her husband when we began our conversation. She was a remarkable lady, still writing and submitting stories for publication until her final days. She passed away in 2020, leaving instructions that her daughter send this painting back to me.
Sunrise Cannery Row
Oil on linen (18” x 20”) 1977
In 1970 I came to the Monterey peninsula from Los Angles. From 1971 until the mid 90s I lived in the New Monterey neighborhood above the famed Cannery Row. During the 1970s I painted a number of scenes of the Monterey harbor and the Cannery Row area. The one above was of old derelict canneries that stood on the spaces that are now occupied by luxury hotels, spas and fine restaurants. This painting sold soon after it was done but last year in a similar situation as described above, it found its way back to the coast after hanging all these years in a home in Fresno, CA.
A Big Sur Stream
Oil on linen (24” x 36” ) 2007
In 2004 I came to live in Big Sur beginning a new chapter in my life and in my landscape paintings. By then Big Sur Inspirations had been born as a family web presence featuring Rachel’s beautiful beaded jewelry, her late husband Terry (Hide) Prince’s book and leather work, Sarah’s many faceted crafts and design works and my paintings. Since then our lives have taken many twists and turns. In 2022 Terry passed away unexpectedly, leaving Rachel and our family in a profound state of grief. He was a man loved by his community who always spread joy wherever he went. He is so missed by all who knew him. The paintings above and their stories represent cycles of life and seem appropriate as we rebirth our newest version of the Big Sur Inspirations website. It is exemplary of the cycles of rebirth we all experience in life. No matter how dark the clouds and fierce the storms the sun will return. This is the spirit of renewal, which honors the cycles and beauty of nature and the harmony of life.