“Union” was my first wildlife painting, and I chose the subject matter of Ring-billed gulls and Lake Michigan because of my love of water and birds. I love to watch gulls walk along the shore, fly gracefully with the wind, and observe their behavior when they’re in groups.

When I walk along the Lake and sit down to rest and observe nature, I enjoy watching and hearing the waves roll up on the shore. I like how the water creeps up the beach then retreats back in a playful manner. Sometimes the waves are very sudsy. Sometimes they are very large and choppy. At other times they are very small and gentle.

In the painting I attempted to convey playful gull behavior and my love for gulls, as well as my affinity for the water of Lake Michigan.

The title symbolizes the five gulls who are together in one moment of time.