A Journey to the Sea

Virginia oil painter, Steven Estrada captures the power and fragility of the natural sea. He equates his large-scale work with “stepping into liquid” and calls his work a “travelogue of the sea”.

“Many of my paintings depict the waters and landscape of the East and West coast, the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico. The latter paintings reflect the powerful effects of Hurricane Katrina where my daughters and I went for years to help rebuild houses after the storm. They are reminders to me of our place in nature, its beauty and its power to change our lives in an instant.

The Latitude 37 Series is a exploration of exact points along the 37th parallel across America from the Pacific shore to coastal Virginia. The painting from the farthest point west depicts Pillar Point at Half Moon Bay in California. The sister painting from furthest east is of the tidal marshes near Wachapreague, VA.”

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website