From the Artist 

I was born in California but spent most of my childhood right in the middle of what my family calls “Old Florida”. My first appreciation for art was self taught, found in the rows of kitsch for sale at my aunt’s roadside fruit stand. Silver Springs was my playground; I practiced underwater ballet and dreamed one day I would become a Weekie Wachee mermaid. Today, while lost in art, I can still float. 

The work I create holds this history while it invents where to go next. Personal experience adds layers that can be seen. Early works celebrated Highwaymen sunsets while life in New Mexico saturated palettes. Years spent on a Quincy farm cultivated dragon’s blood red and travels to Belize brought the bright yellows. A life full of stories weaves through my work.

For the past 28 years, I have worked from my studio home on the Gulf coast of Florida, a place of boundless inspiration. Here, I delight in tiny marine life and stand in awe of infinite sky. In 2018, my husband and artist representative David Harbaugh and I joined with artist and musician Jenny Odom to form a collaborative gallery, JOBA Art Studios, located near the Bowery in the High Cotton Building at 230 Water Street, Apalachicola, Florida.

Art is intuitive and exhilarating; it is good for the soul. 

Beth Appleton