"Lobster with drawn butter"

Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel 8" x 10"

Alice Thompson's Calypso Moon Artist Challenge this month has us painting delicious food that is bad for us. She was very specific that it not be healthy food. Beyond that, the world was our oyster. To that end, I choose lobster with drawn butter. Without chemicals my cholesterol would be sky high and I probably should stay away from anything drenched in butter, but I can't help myself. My doctor gave me a choice a few years ago. He said "We can do this with diet and exercise or I can write you a prescription". Tough choice - Duh! Gooey desserts have never held much fascination for me. I grew up with a diabetic mother and two diabetic sisters and sugar-free jello was often the Dessert du Jour in our house. I never got use to eating sweets. Oh, I'll indulge in a hot fudge sundae now and then but I would really rather have a nice hunk of Roquefort than a piece of cake any day. Besides, lobsters are as much fun to paint as they are to eat. How we suffer for our art!

"Lobster on Ice"

Oil on museum quality, archival ampersand gessobord™ panel - 6” x 8”

I meant for these lobster paintings to be a "before and after" set but oops, I sold the other one already.  I am going to hold this one back for the Ice House show in October.  I had fun scumbling in the barnacles and craggy spines and, of course, ice is always fun to paint.  

"Newport Lobster"

Oil on museum quality, archival ampersand gessobord™ panel - 6” x 8”

My first job, years ago, was a crab steamer in Baltimore. I was in my teens and although I enjoyed the independence that those first meager paychecks brought, I was not comfortable sending thousands of crabs to their death every night when I opened that steam valve. I resigned myself to my place on the food chain and took comfort in the thought that they gave themselves to a greater good. However, my heart wasn't in it and soon, when an opening came up, a found myself in the kitchen as a short order cook and my love of food and cooking began.  

 

I was in Newport, Rhode Island last week and met two of these guys up close and personal. Thankfully they steamed them on the dock for us.  Even with my notorious past with crustaceans, I don't have the heart to plunge one of these guys into boiling water.  That said, they were delicious.