“This is my favorite part, hear the bass thumping? Sometimes it’ll be tribal music, and sometimes it’s classical,” says Madra McDonald, Justin Gaffrey’s publicist. Surrounded by Point Washington State Forest, we walk across the gravel driveway into the warehouse Justin built to accommodate his growing creative interests, which now include welding and sculpting.
As we stand on the acrylic covered floor of his now private studio, sculpted flowers and rabbit portraits reflect a more vulnerable side that until recently, Justin thought was too dark to share.
Justin’s decision to move into the realm of contemporary art was simple. “I can’t stop it,” he says. He stands over a large wood panel, painting and wiping and painting and wiping to even out the magenta hue on his latest work, a nude woman standing upright, encircled by rabbits and sculpted flowers – a piece he wants to leave open to interpretation.
Inspiration is just outside Justin’s home and gallery in the form of a beautiful SoWal cypress pond – a place for reflection and meditation. And beavers, frogs, turtles, and alligators. Justin is mystified by the complete disappearance a few years ago of every single lilypad.
While Justin’s subject matter varies, his works have predominately been reflections of the natural beauty he finds in and around South Walton. The public is invited to visit his gallery Monday through Saturday at 21 Blue Gulf Drive in Blue Mountain Beach. Visit 
