New Places 2021
After arriving in the Sonoran Desert just a couple of months before the shutdown I felt fortunate to have the time to explore the effects of this new place on my work as a painter. There the light, humidity, and cultural influences feels so disparate from what I am accustomed to. I find the natural color palette, beguiling flora, and the sense of distance very different and arresting.
It is invigorating to try something new. My husband, Mark, and I are experimenting with splitting our time between the Catalina Foothills near Tucson, and the North Oregon coast. We enjoy the contrast between our home overlooking Nehalem Bay and the ocean, and this new place in Arizona’s Old Pueblo. It is in a lush desert region, ringed by mountain ranges, and bejeweled with saguaros. In both places, I find it gripping to look out at distances not blocked by man-made forms.
No one is unaffected by the pandemic, but being in a new environment I weathered the isolation by exploring the desert with the thirst of a newcomer. This perspective made the time feel somehow ripe for looking out at the horizon, and focusing in on my own whereabouts. With these paintings I have sought to capture these initial impressions, and delve into the evolution
they inspire.