“Where every brushstroke tells a story.”

Some memories never leave us—not because they are extraordinary, but because they are so ordinary that they feel eternal. A hot summer day. A worn country bench. Four people sharing a pause from the heat. And two children, navigating the timeless dance of sharing, one declaring with certainty: “I was here first.”

In I Was Here First, Edward Wade turns a fleeting childhood quarrel into something universal and deeply human. The watercolor’s softness echoes the haze of a summer afternoon, while the figures hold the rhythm of a memory—playful, imperfect, and real. The children remind us of what it means to claim space, to guard what feels ours, and to express with honesty what adults often hide.

This painting is not simply a depiction of a summer day—it is a reflection of life’s most familiar moments. For some, it recalls the innocence of youth. For others, it stirs memories of siblings, cousins, or neighborhood friends. And for every viewer, it speaks to the truth that even the smallest interactions shape who we are.

Owning I Was Here First is an invitation to pause in your own life—to honor the humor, tenderness, and rawness of being human. It is a reminder that art doesn’t just preserve beauty; it preserves truth. In your home, it becomes more than a painting. It becomes a mirror of memory, a keeper of stories, and a timeless piece of shared humanity.

This is what Edward Wade paints for—not the grand, the monumental, but the moments we almost forget. Until they live on in watercolor. Until they live on with you.