Photos collected by Nate Wilson of paintings made by his late grandmother, Claire Wilson.

My "Mema" came from Birmingham, AL and settled in Pensacola, FL where she married my grandpa, James Rolland Wilson, who framed her paintings for her. They built a house and raised 7 children, then turned the home into a gallery to display all the paintings she made. Unless otherwise noted, the paintings below are still there. Most of her paintings are seascapes of the beaches and waters of the Gulf of Mexico, although she developed many landscapes of the Texas and Arizona deserts near the home they made in Texas for a season of life. My Mema and Grandpa have both passed away, and their home art gallery is no longer active, so I wanted to preserve as much as I can of the beautiful work of this remarkable woman on this website. Additional photos of her works are invited. I apologize for the glare and reflections off the glass of many of my photo. Please send additional submissions to . The titles in italics are Mema's titles, and I made up the rest of the commentary and titling. Please inform me of the proper titles for these works if you know of them. I would also welcome more information about the context of these works.

Sargassum - Seven feet in height, this painting dominated most of the displays of her work over the years, but it was never bought. The detail is breathtaking; the longer you look at it the more creatures you see.

Saguaro Based on a visit to a park in Arizona. On display at my son's home in Manhattan, KS.

A Place in the Sun - This was based on her late daughter Kathy

Safe Home- One of several shorescapes based on Pensacola's Quayside West. Part of the security on the shore is represented by the various crosses spanning the upper part of the painting.

Young Self-Portrait?

Gulf Beach Seashore

Windsong House which the Wilson family rented for several years in Alvin, TX

The Old Mill - based on the one in Mtn Brook, Alabama - a work commissioned by my Mom and on display at her home in Birmingham, AL

Mema was fascinated with some harpists at a Christmas concert and painted this.

On diaplay in my home. This is the view of the Bayou near where Mema lived.

Autumn Leaves - Representing how quickly her two daughters grew up.

Beachcombers - Representing my Mom and my sister.

Butterflies and Flowers - an early work.

Catamarand beach scenes sold pretty well at her gallery.

C. Flowers - On display at my parent's home in Birmingham, AL

Seascape with jellyfish and crab.

Snow is rare in the South, so it held a special fascination for her. This painting also reflects her view of marriage.

Claire painted many pictures of the fishing boats that she saw coming in from Pensacola Bay.

I think this was a neighbor girl in Claire's rowboat docked on the Bayou Grande.

Claire was impressed by what she saw on a trip to the Grand Canyon, but didn't feel she could make a detailed painting of it. She saw it as the work of a masterful creator God which couldn't be duplicated by a human paintbrush. This was also the way she felt about sunsets. She told me she had tried once to paint a sunset and decided never to do that again.

These beach scenes with sea oats were popular sellers at her gallery.

Lighthouse - Unusual early work.

Still life with Marigolds and Pears - Pears were her favorite fruit, and her kitchen table at home really did look like this.

Portrait of Claire's first daughter.

Unknown portrait - early work.

Robins in Dogwood Tree. Claire loved watching the little animals around her home.

Claire was famous for her seagulls because she could paint their wings so realistically. The threatening sky symbolizes many difficulties in life.

Road Past Yesterday - This image was submitted to me by its purchaser in October 2012.

La Charra - Purchased by a client local to Pensacola who later passed away. The painting was donated from the client's estate to one of Claire's children in September 2020.

The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; indeed my heritage is beautiful to me. Psalm 16:6