By nature, each of the constructions was ephemeral, indeed often being on the verge of disappearing with the incoming tide by the time I got there. Some of the larger driftwood constructions went through a variety of incarnations as successive beach goers played with them over many days.

In addition to the daily discovery of beauty, surprise, imagination, delicacy, detail and intimacy, I was frequently rewarded with some astonishing conversations with some of the builders; a family group working collaboratively, a grieving young man, enthusiastic daycare wards, a meditator in his nest….and all were eager to learn more about what I intended to do with the images.

I am an abstract artist and have used the images as the basis for a series of drawings that form a grid of the month of August. This “calendar” has 31 images which derived from examining the photographs themselves, the brief notations I made daily about the beach – its moods, colours, activities – and from collaged pieces of former drawings (my literal “found objects” that reflect what the beach artists were constructing.)

The challenge was to “discover” in my garbage bag of discarded drawings the “just right” scrap of work that would somehow reflect not just what was in a particular set of photos but also the mood or feeling of that specific day. I am inspired constantly by a quote from Nicolaides in “The Natural Way to Draw”. He wrote, “It is necessary to rid yourself of the tyranny of the object as it appears.” This small sentence gives me both the discipline and the freedom I need to work abstractly.