'A, B, C, Don' Alphabet Inspired by Don CeSar Hotel (2.24.10)

Although most snowbirds flock to Florida to soak up the sunshine, part time Pass-a-Grille resident and artist Marilyn Brackney searches for subjects for mixed media creations. Her latest work, the intriguing ‘A, B, C, Don’, is now available at the Don CeSar Hotel.

Brackney has always liked historic architecture, but when she saw the Don CeSar, it was love at first sight. The west tower caught her attention while walking beautiful St. Pete Beach. Looking at it with an artist’s eye, a shape located near the roof resembled the letter B.

Brackney, who created the popular art site

www.kid-at-art.com, is known for her architectural alphabets. She was confident this grand, pink lady would reveal 25 more letters so she could create an alphabet based on elements located at the Don.

Brackney was delighted to find the letters while touring the building with her husband, Larry, who photographed the architectural elements. The photo to the left is the architectural element that inspired the letter 'Y'. Inside that on the upper right side is a seahorse, which inspired the letter 'S'.

After finding all the letters, she laid out the artwork in pencil on heavy watercolor paper. The artist went over the lines with ink, and applied color with thick, water-based paint. Next Brackney covered everything with India ink.

When the work was dry, she washed off the ink and paint, leaving an antiqued, pale image of the letters, flowers, birds, shells, and background. Brackney added the final colors and shading with colored pencils.

In speaking about the process of creating ‘A, B, C, Don’, Brackney says, “It took hundreds of hours to complete. It was a great challenge, but making the art was a joyful process, too.”

In December, she had the work made into an art print, and the work is offered for sale at the Don CeSar Beach Resort and Hotel. Brackney hopes ‘A, B, C, Don’ will help others see the hotel’s beauty in a new light and encourage historic preservation.

Back to Homepage