Dolphin in Dappled Sunlight

Dolphin in Dappled Sunlight – acrylic painting by Heni Sandoval

Here in Atlanta the kids have been back in school for three weeks now. My daughter is in her senior year of high school and will soon begin applying to colleges. With the realization of the expenses that lie ahead, my husband and I are trying to figure out the various financial options of her potential college choices.   It’s overwhelming; so, early this week when I received a message on my Heni’s Happy Painting’s Etsy Shop from a woman who loved my Mom and Bay Dolphin print but wanted a single dolphin instead, it was the perfect time to step back from that stress and dive into a new painting.

Dolphin in the Dappled Sunlight is the result.  I’ve always loved dolphins, they are so playful.  When we were in Hawaii swimming with them, the beauty of the light through the clear blue water reflecting on their bodies was striking.  I tried to capture that light and yet make it slightly different from the other painting.  I am hoping the woman will be pleased.  Enjoy these last days of the season!

Caribbean Dreaming

Ever since I was lucky enough to spend two weeks on a fishing boat in the Caribbean and learned to snorkel, tropical fish have amazed me.  It was  magical to witness these vivid colored and various shaped fish gliding along as if choreographed in a backdrop of coral in light dappled aqua water.

I painted Caribbean Dreaming a couple of winters ago during a cold spell to lift my spirits.  I find it freeing to paint fish  because pretty much any thing goes, you can play by layering colors as the fish starts to appear and the background can also be just as colorful and layered.

This year January has been unseasonably warm but cold weather is sure to come for a bit and I will definitely  take time to paint a new fish.

Available here.

My New Painting – Mom and Baby Dolphin

Last April we went to a family wedding in Hawaii.  One of the highlights of our vacation was swimming with dolphins. While snorkeling at a coral reef I looked over to see a pair of dolphins swim by.  We swam out to where there were more and watched them frolic.  They were so playful and the beauty of the light through the clear blue water reflecting on their bodies was striking.   Here is a photo that my niece took of them.

photo credit: Julia Kunze

I have always loved dolphins.  Throughout my childhood every year our family went to St. Simons Island off the coast of Georgia for a week in late August.  We used to fish at the Point – a lovely spot where the beach met the marsh.  I  remember fishing on the rocks there and just waiting to see the dolphins that occasionally passed through.  It was very exciting to spot them, they seemed so joyful and free.  

Through the years I’ve dreamed about dolphins.   As a kid I liked gymnastics but could never get past my fear of doing back handsprings.  My dad said it was because I was so tall and had a big head; whatever the case, I  never mastered it.  I remember a powerful dream that I had in my twenties when I was going through a particularly tough time and feeling a  lack of confidence.  In the dream a group of dolphins swam around me and helped me do a back handspring.  With their help it was so easy to do and I woke up feeling they had given me a gift.

Since getting back from Hawaii, I’ve been inspired to paint them, the painting below is my third one.   Dolphins are a great example of just how joyful life can be.  It is my hope that these paintings help convey that joy.

 

Mom and Baby Dolphin

 Print available here.