Is That Adam?

Nechranice is a place close to my heart; I return there twice a year to fish. But every June, the calm surface of the water transforms as dozens of white sails from teenage yacht races fill the horizon. My friend's son, Adam, used to come here for sailing camps, and these regattas were his whole world.

Whenever I sit there now with my fishing rod, watching the movement in the distance, I find myself squinting at the water. I search among those tiny figures on the boats for a familiar face. Is he out there? Is that Adam? This painting is about that summer search—about memories that come rushing back with every gust of wind in the sails.