National Parks and Conservation Landscape Paintings

My national park and protected landscape paintings are intentionally more recognizable, moving between observed places and semi-abstract interpretations. They begin with time spent exploring wild places on foot, by bicycle, or from the water. I am drawn to the details that emerge when I slow down, and to the ways light, weather, geology, and living ecosystems shape each landscape.

Photography often provides a starting point in the studio, but rather than recreating an exact scene, I follow what remains in my sensory memory: the feel of the air, the sounds of water or wind, the shifting light, and the experience of moving through a place. A feather, an interesting twig, or the shape of a leaf may find its way into my mark-making, while natural plant dyes bring something of the landscape itself into the work. Familiar shorelines, mountains, forests, and wetlands remain visible, but the paintings carry the experience beyond a literal view.

Conservation is central to my practice. I hope these paintings offer a sensory connection to protected lands, reminding us that we belong to a larger community of living things and share responsibility for its future.