It's a little after 3 am and unfortunately I am up and unable to sleep. One of our cats, Mr Pong has gone missing and our other cat Miss Ping (they are Siamese of course) is calling for him. Loudly. The only up side to all this is when I ventured out to join her and call for him (again) the early morning air is warm and delicious as only Florida can be this time of year. The moon is cloud chased and Deborah Paris' faithful renderings of Florida were summoned out of my sleepy brain. Many of her paintings, luminous wonders that they are, fall in the foot steps of Heade, Innes, Homer, Sargent. She understands the gift of this detached bit of the African continent and its unique ecosystem. When I look at her paintings I am delighted by the way she holds dear the nutrient rich air which nourishes so well plants here can exist with no soil. Florida contains large tracts of very wild land surrounded by bounced light and water. Luminosity abounds. Miss Paris, the queen of contemporary luminous painters, has captured it for all of us to enjoy. She arrives this week at M Gallery with around 20 works for a major show. Stop by and enjoy them with us. The opening is from 6 to 9 Friday February 5 at 16 S Palm in Sarasota FL. Crystal will also post the entire show on-line and on Facebook. Now, back to look for my cat. Oh Mr Pong....