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“Light and Shadow”

We have been in the “land of enchantment” for nearly 6 weeks. I am headed home today. We are richer for our experiences and time in this beautiful state. We are shy our pop-up camper, but we have gained many stories, a bear skull, a bunch of finished paintings, stone carvings, and fused glass jewelry pieces my sons made:) As a group we have covered hundreds of miles on trail, and watched the light change on many mountains and mesas. I can’t imagine a better way to spend the summer. For our friendships we have nurtured, and the time we have spent together…I am truly grateful.

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This is my “daily painting” at White Sands National Monument. I will do a painting of the dunes by moonlight in the next few weeks, but for now, you can enjoy my shadows.

I leave a little bit of myself in Texas when we depart on this journey, and now I feel a little bit of myself will remain in New Mexico.

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“Work as Prayer”

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I have just finished reading “The Hawk and the Dove” trilogy by Penelope Wilcock. It is the story of a Benedictine monastery in the 13th century. A brother at Christ in the Desert thought I would enjoy it. What a great story, and it has made the time I have spent at The monastery even more meaningful. This is Brother James, watering the prayer garden.

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“White Mountain Wilderness”

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This is in the White Mountain Wilderness, in a meadow, on the trail to Nogal Peak. Southeastern New Mexico had terrible fires earlier this summer; this area was not burned, and the trail was just opened yesterday. It felt good to paint green after all the red and orange of Ghost Ranch.

What you can't see in my photo is the village of fairy houses that my children discovered in this grove of trees. I intended to paint the kids in, but they had moved on to the creek by the time I got to that part of the painting. I don't know how to include the gurgle of the creek, or the children's laughter carried by the cool mountain breeze. You will have to imagine the fairy houses and the soundtrack.

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“Plaza Blanca”

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This is Plaza Blanca, or The White Place. Georgia O’Keefe painted it, and it is feature in the film “Cowboys and Aliens.” Plaza Blanca is eerily devoid of color compared to the red rocks that are found around Ghost Ranch.

For the artists reading this, or those interested in color theory, you will find this note interesting. I painted this study with a set of pastels I made this week in a workshop, we made beautiful purples, and lights. One of the sticks I made was a total surprise. I mixed 5 parts ultra marine blue, with one part yellow ochre. Yellow and blue makes green right? I expected a slightly olive green. They mixed together to make the most beautiful greyed periwinkle!? The scientist in me knows that until I repeat my experiment my results don’t mean much, but for now I am left guessing that because both ochre and ultramarine and warm versions of yellow and blue, that affected their mixing to make a purple. The color is beautiful, and the surprise, a delight.

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“Home away from home”

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For the last decade this little camper has been my home away from home. We bought it when our first son was a mere babe. This beautiful camping spot is where we have tried to spend as much of our summer as we can possibly manage. We camp next to a wonderful watercolor artist named Pomona, who lives in a little scamp, and we watch the weather and the light change over Pedernal and the mesas that surround us.

This little pop-up has seen us through camping with tiny babies, terrible storms, unbearable heat, icy cold, stomach flus, and many, many good times. It has been our home base for races, and art trips, family reunions, and excursions. Friends and family have joined us over the years, and it has been base camp for many a tent village. The tiny kitchen serving parties of 30 or more, meal after meal.

We probably outgrew our little base camp years ago, but as it gets cranky around the edges, we have decided perhaps it should be home to a less rambunctious crew, so we have found a new family for her, and tonight is our last night in our little camper.

People often ask how we have instilled the love for the outdoors in our children. We often joke that perhaps it has something to do with the 6 of us living in our little camper most of the summer, where there is just enough room to sleep, but not enough room to change your mind. It has been a good rig, and a wonderful home away from home.

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“Day in Provence”

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I took my workshop to a local lavender farm to paint for the day. After painting red rocks plein air all week, the lavender was a delightful change. The farm was beautiful, surrounded by mature cottonwood trees, and blooming chamisa plants. We painted in the shade as we watched workers prune the bushes, placing neat bundles of lavender on top of each bush. It was really a lovely day, perhaps if you take a deep breath you can catch a waft still lingering in the air.

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“Joshua Tree”

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I took my class to paint in front of Georgia O’Keefe’s house. There was lots of atmosphere to subdue the colors of the desert. We sat in the quiet colors and painted in silence. It was a special time to share together. This dead tree looks almost the same as when Georgia painted it.