Rippled currents and bobbing boats set the scene for Otto Trott?s latest series of paintings.

His new show, entitled ?Flatts Village?, is part of the ?Artists in the Garden? series which opens at the Masterworks Gallery in the Botanical Gardens tonight.

Flatts Village has always held a special place in Mr. Trott?s heart.

?I have always thought that Flatts is one of the most beautiful locations in Bermuda,? he said.

?People seem to like my paintings of water, and I decided to paint these paintings featuring water, because I recently read that you will know your gift because people will seek it. I am attempting to show Flatts Village in its full glory.?

Painting Flatts at different times of day revealed shadows and other interesting artistic inspirations the artist.

?I discovered that if you look from the Aquarium to Flatts Village during the middle of the day the buildings and hillside are in shadow and quite dark,? said Mr. Trott.

?I began going to Flatts at various times of the day to get it at its most beautiful times, and I have painted it from various angles at different times. Some have a strong current, some have calm water. Each situation presents a different painting challenge. I like to paint series and I can continue painting Flatts for years.?

?Artists who paint water have to deal with the reflections on the surface,? said the former high school teacher. ?Water has a colour that varies with the angle of the sun, and it is transparent, so you have to show what is under the water. You are able to see rocks and sand in shallow water, and deep water shows the colour of the water, but you will get a blurred view of the bottom if the water is not too deep.?

Some of the other objects in Mr. Trott?s scenes are boats, buildings, trees, sky and people.

?All these objects combine in one way above the water, but reflect another way off the water,? he said.

?Combining objects above the surface, reflections on the surface, and what?s beneath the surface, is a challenge.?

Mr. Trott?s chosen medium for this series is oil paint.

?I have chosen oil paint as my medium for these paintings because I can apply the paint in different ways to give the illusion of different situations,? he said. ?I have always admired paintings of harbours filled with boats.?

It was a taboo subject to an overseas art critic who commented on Bermudian art during the last Biennial at the National Gallery.

?If you have tried to meet the challenge of painting water you would not refer to harbour scenes as paintings of boats bobbing on the water.

?The impressionists often had water and reflections in their paintings. Venice, the Mediterranean coast, New England fishing villages, Cornwall, Florida, and the Caribbean have all been the subjects of artists for years.

?I must admit that some artists will paint mere boats bobbing on the water. I hope I have done more then that in these paintings. Simple pictures can be beautiful though, and beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.?

As well as these Mr. Trott is also putting another painting in the show ? one of a pretty pink cottage.

?There are even flowers in front of it, which is another taboo by that critic that I will challenge for the fun of it,? he said. ?It took a long time to do the painting though because it is large.?

On painting series, he said many of the world?s greatest artists have done them on a single subject.

?Monet and his lily pond is one of the most famous series,? he said.

?I will have around 15 paintings of Flatts in this show, along with a few other recent works.

?The largest painting is a panorama of Flatts looking east from St. James Court. There is a strong current coming under the bridge and you can see most of the boats and buildings in Flatts.

?One painting is Flatts at twilight, while the sky is still blue, but in it you can also see the moon in the sky and lights on in the houses.

?Another is from the same spot and at the same time of day, but looking toward the sunset. It has golden skies and water. Boats, buildings and trees are silhouettes. I also did two paintings looking south from Flatts Bridge. All the objects are the same, but the paintings are very different because the light and the current are different.

?One has side lighting and calm water. The colours are bright and you can see the seabed. The other has a strong current and you are looking into the light. There is less colour and the pattern of light shining off the current is the focus.?

With all that he has done of the tiny village, Mr. Trott said he will continue to paint Flatts.

?It?s because there are always houses being built and renovated,? he said.

?The boats in the inlet are always changing. For years the dominant boats in the inlet were the Aquarium?s old white boat with orange trim that was docked next to the bridge and the helmet diving boat.

?They are gone and most of the boats are now fibreglass.?

Eventually his paintings will reflect the changing times and not just the changing times of day, he said.

?I think that a lot of people will enjoy these paintings because there are always people enjoying the scenery in Flatts Village,? he said.

The longest time that he has spent on a painting was about three months, as he said: ?It also takes a long time going on location to see the changing conditions. You may have to wait months to catch the right combination of light and tides.

?People present another challenge if you are not using models. I did a few paintings of people fishing in Flatts years ago and was fortunate. I have been wanting to do a painting of boys fishing and swimming in Flatts for years.

?I use my own reference material, and its difficult getting something that works right as a painting. I may have some paintings of boys swimming and fishing in time for this show.?

Although he captures the moods, tides and currents of Flatts Village, he is mainly a studio painter.

?I was a plein air painter for almost 20 years before I started working in the studio,? he said.

?Golfers say its not how you drive but how you arrive.?

Mr. Trott said the space looks as if it can hold about 25 paintings, but he will probably have at least 15 paintings of Flatts. ?I may be able to do some more before the show begins,? he said, ?but I am concerned with presenting a good show, so the final arrangement of works will be based on how they look together in the gallery.

I have an idea of what I want to do, but hanging a show is an art in itself.?

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