florida inspired
“Florida native, born and raised in South Florida, my early childhood years were spent fishing and snorkeling the islands of the Florida Keys or strolling the Juno Beach Pier. All of which had a significant impact on my view of the world and continues to inspire my artwork today. In this collection, you’ll find expressive and abstract renditions of our magnificent ocean and Florida wildlife.” - Jodi Gaines
Accepting Commissions .
With tentacles stretching beyond the canvas, Defiance captures the quiet strength of one of the ocean's most intelligent creatures. Inspired by the resilience found beneath Florida's waters, expressive painterly brushstrokes and layered textures balance movement with calm, creating a portrait that speaks to perseverance, adaptability, and the courage to stand your ground with quiet confidence and an unwavering fierceness.
39” x 19.5” x 1” Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
Beneath the shifting blues of Florida's coastal waters, a family of manatees drifts quietly through layers of light and color. Submerged blends expressive painterly brushstrokes with rich textures and luminous washes, capturing the peaceful presence of these gentle creatures and the quiet wonder of seeing them just below the surface.
20” x 24” x 1” Oil on Canvas
The Approach captures the quiet momentum of a sea turtle moving through luminous water toward the viewer. Sweeping blue tones suggest motion overhead, while textured sand and submerged forms below create depth and grounding. The composition conveys both curiosity and calm, inviting a closer look into the underwater moment.
30 × 20 in, Mixed Media on Canvas
An ethereal study of light and motion, "Sea Bubbles" captures the transient beauty of air rising through coastal waters. Layers of translucent blues, seafoam greens, and pearlescent whites are applied with delicate washes and textured impasto to evoke depth and the quiet lift of bubbles toward the surface. Scattered circular forms, some sharply defined and others softly diffused, create rhythm and pause across the composition, suggesting both micro-detail and vast seascape.
Ideal for coastal, contemporary, or minimalist interiors; living rooms, bedrooms, and office spaces seeking a calming focal point that conveys movement and serenity.
14 × 11 in, Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
Comes with black floating frame for easy hanging
Gathering Below offers an abstracted underwater view of manatees drifting together beneath the surface in layered currents of deep blue and turquoise. Inspired by Florida’s coastal waterways, the painting blends movement, texture, and softened forms to create a calm, immersive atmosphere. Part of the Florida Inspired series, the piece reflects the quiet rhythm and gentle presence of one of Florida’s most iconic marine species.
24” x 36” Mixed Media on Canvas
Inspired by photography from wildlife photographer Chuck Brown
Inspired by the bright colors of fire coral at the bottom of Florida Reefs. Like many things in the ocean that have bright orange or red colors, it’s untouchable in the water, but beautiful to look at!
14 × 11 in, Acrylic on Canvas
Comes with black floating frame for easy hanging.
Tide Line I captures the meeting of structure and sea. A solitary vertical marker stands against shifting layers of blue, evoking a pier post, a channel marker, or a quiet point of reference in an ever-moving tide. Textured strokes and luminous white lines trace the rhythm of waves seen from above, inviting the viewer into a moment of stillness within motion. The piece reflects themes of memory, navigation, and the comfort of having a fixed point in changing waters.
24” × 20” Mixed Media on Canvas
The Observer captures the quiet intelligence and unmistakable presence of the blue jay hidden within a layered, abstract landscape. Surrounded by vibrant greens and gestural marks, the bird emerges as both subject and symbol, inviting viewers into a moment of stillness, curiosity, and connection with the natural world. The painting blends realism with expressive abstraction, creating a contemporary wildlife piece rich in texture, movement, and atmosphere.
20” x 16” Mixed Media on Canvas
Inspired by photography from wildlife photographer Chuck Brown
Part of the Florida Inspired Series
Turtle Dreams presents a peaceful underwater moment, with a resting sea turtle beneath shafts of filtered light. Expansive blue space and layered circular forms create a dreamlike atmosphere, while the turtle’s detailed form anchors the composition with warmth and presence. The piece evokes quiet refuge beneath the surface.
30 × 20 in, Mixed Media on Canvas
Tide Line II explores the hypnotic rhythm of coastal water as overlapping bands of blue unfold like aerial tide patterns. Soft transitions and etched wave lines suggest movement, depth, and the breath of the sea. Flecks of shoreline color anchor the composition, offering a sense of place and passage. This painting invites contemplation of time, tide, and the gentle pull of returning to familiar shores.
24” × 20” Mixed Media on Canvas
Currently exhibiting at the Marvin S. Cone Annual High School Juried Art Show Alumni Exhibit, MartinArts Courthouse Cultural Center, June 26 - August 22, 2026
Octopus Prime captures the intelligence, movement, and commanding presence of one of the ocean’s most fascinating creatures. Set within layered blues, drifting textures, and abstract underwater elements, the octopus emerges with both realism and expressive energy. Part of the Florida Inspiredseries, the painting reflects the vibrant marine life and coastal ecosystems that shape Florida’s underwater world while blending contemporary abstraction with bold color and motion.
36” x 24” Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
Soft currents carry a vibrant gathering of jellyfish through an underwater landscape filled with color, texture, and movement. Inspired by Florida's coastal waters, Jellyfish Fields combines expressive painterly brushstrokes with luminous layers of blues, purples, and coral tones, celebrating the unexpected beauty and quiet rhythm of life beneath the surface.
18” x 18” x 1” Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
Vivid, bold, joyous. Pinks and oranges, the curve of the neck, the poise of the beak — this piece doesn’t shy away. Movement is suggested in how light plays off the feathers, in the elegance of the pose, in the momentary attention the creature holds.
Oil on canvas, 24 x 18 x .75in. Comes framed with black floating frame.
Coastal Rhythms I presents an abstract aerial view of the shoreline at Juno Beach, Florida. Layered bands of turquoise and deep blue trace the movement of water from above, while thin contour lines reference both wave edges and nautical mapping. A vertical pier element anchors the composition, intersecting shifting tide patterns. Subtle inscriptions of longitude and latitude mark the specific coastal location that inspired the work.
26 x 18 in (Full paper size 30 × 22), Mixed Media on Paper
See Coastal Rhythms II for the matching set.
Coastal Rhythms II continues the Juno Beach series, focusing on the fluid patterning of tides viewed from above. Layered blues and soft shoreline tones create depth and movement, while fine linear contours echo nautical chart lines. A small vessel moves through darker water, reinforcing the sense of scale and place. Longitude and latitude coordinates are integrated into the surface, grounding the abstraction in a real coastal location.
26 x 18 in (Full paper size 30 × 22), Mixed Media on Paper
See Coastal Rhythms I for the matching set.
Dynamic yet fluid, Bait Ball interprets the mesmerizing movement of schooling fish through abstract form. The composition suggests motion, unity, and the rhythm of marine life beneath the surface.
14 × 11 in, Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
Comes framed in black floating frame
Inspired by long afternoons along Florida's shoreline, The Umbrella Effect celebrates the simple ritual of finding a place beneath an umbrella, listening to the gentle roll of the waves, and letting time fade into the background. Rich layers of blue and expressive brushwork create a peaceful coastal scene that feels both familiar and restorative.
24 × 20 in, Mixed Media on Canvas
Bluish, translucent hues; shimmer; a sense of vastness. Light moves across water, reflects, dances. There’s salt, there’s horizon, there’s depth. The piece conjures tides, memories of the ocean, the mingling of sun and surf.
Oil on canvas, 24 x 18 in