This rising sun was born on the longest night, the tipping point of dark versus light. I attached sprigs of freshly cut evergreen cedar and set it under the prairie moon to rest in the night’s darkness to greet the rising sun of the winter solstice. Even though we still have long nights ahead, there […]
Murmuration of Blackbirds
Murmurations are mystery incarnate to me. Forming to swoop over prairie fields picking at fallen grain, their structure and form mesmerizes. I’ll stop what I’m doing to watch. It draws me in fully. Frenetic thoughts and worries vanish, instead I am there, fully present. And maybe, that’s their gift. […]
Smoky Hill Sandbar
Nature shows us how to navigate change in the shifting sandbars of a river. Sediment allows waters to shape it into new beings without resistance. This piece is my expression of the Smoky Hill an her sandbars, a slow river that meanders through some of the prettiest parts of the American High Plains. It has […]
Plains Tornado
Like most people who live in tornado alley, I’ve seen my fair share. The truth is, lives are irrevocably changed by tornadoes. They are ferocious entities of twisting, beautiful wind laying bare the world. The best tornadoes skip along the open prairie, harming none, and mesmerizing us with their intensity. The worst, leave a path […]
Now, is the Season to Plant
One of my favorite sayings attributed to Martin Luther is even if I knew that tomorrow the world would end, I would still plant my apple tree. What a lovely affirmation in uncertain times, for it draws us toward the innate goodness of things. My rendition of a garden patch invites you to consider what […]
A Reminder All Shall Be Well
In the midst of life’s curious and sometimes harsh ways, I turn to English anchoress Julian of Norwich who said, “All shall be well. All shall be well. And all manner of things shall be well.” To me, the cross symbolizes faith but also a visual reminder of the path we walk, often finding ourselves […]
Moon of the Kindred Spirits
Symbolizing unifying ties to the natural world and friendship with the elements, it is created with stone, grain, rust, prairie plant ash and paint. It celebrates the time the natural world puts away winter’s mantle, and steps from solace and quiet into light. The plant and animal spirits are gathering in community for a new […]
Moon of the Wise Woman
I call this painting Moon of the Wise Woman because it honors the last full moon of winter, the end of the dark season of the year. I painted it in the days leading to the full moon of March 2020, a super moon full of promise and an invitation to put into action what […]
They Promised Her the Moon at McPherson College
A piece for the upcoming McPherson College show celebrating the women’s suffragette movement. It’s called They Promised Her the Moon. Inspired by my great grandmothers, who like many women, left home and journeyed West toward a new life. By day, women walk diverse paths, but at night we gaze at a common moon. A shared time […]
