Poster Image

Three dragon kites fly among gulls above a lake

$20

Item#: 2004SYR12

Purchase Details

11x17-inches, printed on heavy weight (100-pound) Hammermill cover paper. We package each print with a piece of chipboard in a clear plastic sleeve.

You also receive…

An information page with photos of the artist and poet, and hand-written comments from each.

Medium- and large-format posters are available by custom order. Contact us for details.

Poem Inspiration Location

Summer Breezes Lift

poster information

Description

Summer breezes lift
gull and dragon kites across
Onondaga Lake

I think of kite flying whenever spring comes. It's a magical time. The winds pick up, the skies fill up with kites, and it's really fun. It's about being a kid again. It releases something within you that just soars.

I remember being in Blacksburg, Virginia, years ago, flying a kite in a rainstorm and not wanting to give it up. But then it looked like there might be lightning, and of course we did have to quit.

In Syracuse we've flown kites at Onondaga Lake, at Westcott Reservoir and at Green Lakes. My husband has a snow goose kite. The gulls are often curious. People watch but are usually hesitant to try kite flying.

I liked the imagery of this poem: the summer breezes, the seagulls and the kites. I could picture it right away.
I did some sketches of what I thought it would look like. Then I went to Onondaga Lake, did some more sketching and took some photos. It was a nice day with a bright sky and beautiful clouds.

After I got some photos developed, I did some more drawings, and from there, composed the final composition and painted it in oils. I wanted you to feel like you were there, enjoying the kites, seagulls and shapes in the clouds. I hoped to create the feeling of a warm summer day with a peaceful breeze.