A little bit of Ponte Vedra is now hanging on the walls of Jacksonville International Airport.

In the middle of the bustling hub near the pre-security-checkpoint Starbucks is the quiet Haskell Gallery where several paintings of two Sawgrass residents now reside.

Ellen Diamond and Judith Stanyard loaned the airport gallery nearly 20 paintings each for the “Traditions in Paint” collection, on display since mid-July.

The artist reception for the collection occurred last weekend, Saturday, Aug. 13, where Diamond and Stanyard mingled with gallery officials and guests.

“It’s very thrilling,” said Diamond of the collection, which took many months to plan.

Cabeth Cornelius, program coordinator for the Jacksonville International Airport Arts Commission, said the “whole purpose [of the gallery] is to show regional artists.”

About 10,000 people pass through the airport daily, so the Sawgrass artists’ work should get quite some attention, she said.

“That’s why it’s so exciting,” said Cornelius. “It really is great exposure.”

Stanyard said she primarily paints still life, incorporating bits of nature throughout, whether it’s fruit or her trademark — a bird’s nest.

While Stanyard said she has painted on and off her entire life, painting became a more serious undertaking for her about 10 years ago. Stanyard said she now paints every day.

As for Diamond, her father was a portrait artist, and she said she grew up with the smell of oil paint in her home. She, too, has painted her whole life.

Diamond primarily paints landscapes, inspired predominantly by her travels to Tuscany, Italy, and Provence, France, she said.

Both Diamond and Stanyard are acrylic painters, but Stanyard sometimes incorporates oil paints into her pieces, she said.

For more information on Stanyard and her work, visit www.judithstanyard.com

To learn more about Diamond and her paintings, visit www.ellendiamond.com

The Ponte Vedra artists’ “Traditions in Paint” collection will be displayed at Jacksonville International Airport’s Haskell Gallery through Oct. 4.

sarahhenderson@pontevedrarecorder.com, (904)686-3941

Source: http://bit.ly/qEn1nu