ARIPEKA, Fla. — On the coast of Pasco County, the old fishing village of Aripeka is home to less than 400 people.
- Artist finds inspiration in old fishing village of Aripeka
- Leslie Neumann uses landscape paintings with conservation passion
One of them leaves quite an impression.
Leslie Neumann left the bright lights of New York City 30 years ago, choosing Aripeka to be her home as an artist.
“The beauty of Aripeka just won me over,” Neumann said. “I don’t need NYC culture to be inspired. I need nature to be inspired.”
With a view from her studio of a beautiful salt marsh, the renowned landscape artist has all the inspiration she’ll need.
“It is odd for me to live here. I’ll grant you that,” Neumann said. “But once you see Aripeka, once you see the beauty of it, you’ll say, ‘I get that.’”
On top of her unique location, she’s one of few to practice the ancient art of Encaustic painting, or painting with hot wax.
“It’s like nothing else. Every time you use the material, something magical happens. You can’t predict what’s going to happen, that’s one of the frustrating and fun things,” Neumann said.
She says her landscapes generally have two conflicting themes of turbulence versus eternal.
“I’m an upbeat person. My work is positive but there is an aspect that is disturbing,” Neumann said.
Her landscape paintings work hand-in-hand with her other passion of conservation. She was one of the founding members of the Gulf Coast Conservancy, which has helped save thousands of acres over the past 25 years.
“All of this beauty all around us, I’m going to work hard for this,” Neumann said.
Perhaps it shouldn’t be that big of a surprise that Neumann has been so successful working in Aripkea. After all, the official county sign calls it an artist haven.
Aripeka has been home to several artists over the years, including world-renowned pop artist James Rosenquist, who passed away in 2017.