“Lyrae”, 2021, acrylic on canvas, 80”x100”
Based on a photograph by her childhood friend, Dana Shane, this painting depicts the America
poet, Lyrae Van Clief-Stefanon, my dear friend and collaborator, in her hammock on the banks
of the St. Johns River in Florida. This sequestered fishing cove inspired her poem, “Lost.”

Lost (excerpt)
The river, unrolled bolt of silk, gives
evening the smell of fish, wet leaves,
loosening matter. We glide through
its blue-plum tint toward night, the leftover
tang of red wine in our mouths. Upstream
an idea waits for us: if we were lost
how much more would we love each other.