TALL TALES

These Longboat Key collectors met me in Fort Myers to pick up their new painting, Tall Tales. The client, who loves color, requested a painting of flamingos. I created this after approval of a concept sketch.

The reference photos of flamingos were taken from a trip to the Miami Zoo from about 10 years ago. At the time, my younger son was passionate about photography and he took many photographs of the flamingo exhibit that day. This is the joyful result, a decade later.

It even matches their car! This is their fifth painting of mine that they have purchased.

I am so grateful and honored!

Tall Tales 38" x 28" Commission 2024 by Christine Adele Moore

American flamingos are iconic symbols in South Florida lifestyle. Vibrant, colorful and vocal, over 40 of these beautiful birds are waiting to greet visitors. They can be seen at our new state-of-the-art entry plaza lounging around in their signature pose: standing on one of their skinny legs with their heads tucked into their bodies. Now while most of us would break a sweat holding this position for too long, flamingos can hold it for hours and they consider this being “at rest.” Keepers feed the flamingos twice a day with pellets that contain carotene. This is responsible for giving the birds their gorgeous color. In the wild, flamingos will lay about one egg in a muddy nest mound. These mounds are built together by both the mother and father. Typically, flamingos are quite social birds, getting along well and interacting with each other. Some, however, will show more aggressive behavior, especially around mating season when the birds get more competitive. During this time, the birds are looking for the best mate, so they are likely to act tougher with each other. But, when a flamingo finds its perfect match, they will usually stick with that partner. - Zoo Miami