I started out February with a fun day of celebrating my friend Kalisha’s 40th birthday. We indulged in a truly “wild west” activity of horseback riding in the desert at Saguaro Lake Ranch and then had a little “far east” sushi lunch. The weather was perfect and the company was pretty sweet, too!

I got some great news early in the month, learning I had been selected to exhibit in the 21st Artlink Phoenix Juried Exhibition. The show includes 85 inspired works from over 725 that were submitted for consideration. My painting Quarantine Queen is enjoying her stay at FOUND:RE Contemporary (a dream venue for any artist!). The exhibition opened to the public on February 20 and runs through July 11, 2021.

I finally made it to Sky Harbor Airport on March 20 to see my painting Midcentury Magnate on display at the Phoenix Airport Museum. I was pretty excited to see it in such an incredible venue, but even more excited for the reason that brought me to the place – being able to finally welcome a visit from my mother after fourteen months apart.

Mom and I had a wonderful time around the Phoenix area. We visited Bartlett Lake, Phoenix Mountain Preserve, and Boyce Thompson Arboretum; went to FOUND:RE to see the exhibition; and even did a little rock hounding out in Tonopah. I think we both enjoyed every minute of it!

Aaron and I spent most every Saturday and Sunday of February and March out rockhounding in the desert, knowing that the desert will soon heat up to inhospitable levels for several months. We searched for (and found) fire agates, banded agates, Payson “diamonds” (double-terminated quartz crystals), Apache tears, beautiful colors of jasper and chert, and fossils.

I put many of those finds to good use, embarking upon a rock garden installation in the backyard. I am still working to complete the display, but so far I think it’s a fun way to enjoy our treasures and enhance our abode. I also added a little raised bed garden which has provided us with kale, spinach, arugula, and tomatoes.

I created some larger artworks during February and March, and the overarching theme seemed to be portraits - portraits of cacti, canines, and a couple of winged creatures. I enjoyed indulging my penchant for details in many of these pieces. It seems no matter how much I tell myself I will “keep it simple,” it’s just really hard for me to do so. Regardless, I think I stretched my artistic muscles a bit on these pieces and tried some new approaches. Check them out at the bottom of this blog post!

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Transmission 24x18”, Watercolor on 140 lb. Arches Hot Pressed Paper Juried into Portland on the Park Exhibition through late-August 2021. — *Transmission*
24x18”, Watercolor on 140 lb. Arches Hot Pressed Paper
Juried into Portland on the Park Exhibition through late-August 2021.

Commodity Corridor 24x18”, Watercolor and genuine copper leaf on 140 lb. Arches Hot Pressed Paper For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase. — Commodity Corridor
24x18”, Watercolor and genuine copper leaf on 140 lb. Arches Hot Pressed Paper
For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase.

I've Got My Eye on You 10x8”, Watercolor on 300 lb. Arches Cold Pressed Paper For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase. — I've Got My Eye on You
10x8”, Watercolor on 300 lb. Arches Cold Pressed Paper
For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase.

Relativity 10x8”, Watercolor on 300 lb. Arches Cold Pressed Paper For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase. — Relativity
10x8”, Watercolor on 300 lb. Arches Cold Pressed Paper
For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase.

Anticipation 12x16”, Watercolor on 300 lb. Arches Cold Pressed Paper For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase. — Anticipation
12x16”, Watercolor on 300 lb. Arches Cold Pressed Paper
For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase.

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Searching for fire agates high up on Saddle Mountain

Things you see rockhounding - Nothing, Arizona

I hit the ground running in 2021, feeling like I was on a roll with my painting. I’ve really been enjoying bringing animal-related puns to life, inspired by the critters and quirky things I see on walks around the neighborhood with my Lola dog. My first piece of the year, Flighty but Mighty, featured a guineafowl and a western diamondback rattlesnake. I’ve never seen a rattlesnake near my current home, but guineafowl do indeed live in the nearby “poultry neighborhood.”

The beautiful, speedy, and slightly weird guineafowl are actually native to Africa. Reading about them, I learned that they are very good at deterring snakes, usually by making intimidating noises. Sometimes they have been known to attack and even kill these slithery serpents. My painting is meant to convey more than a whimsical match between a wacky bird and a well-known venomous villain, though. It is a display of the unpredictability of nature, and the many ways we are stronger than we may believe that we are… sentiments that most of us likely learned in 2020 (p.s. - happy new year!).

Chickens seem to be some of the punniest creatures and I just kept cranking out poultry pieces, including several of my 2x3” miniature paintings. Almost all have found their forever homes, but as of this blog post, I still have three minis that you could call your own - visit my shop to purchase.

In mid-January, I had a house guest for a few days. I stepped into my living room and my eye was drawn through the window to my front yard where a fuzzy friend was making itself at home. I hopped out the front door to find a large domestic rabbit who was more than happy to meet me. Sure that someone nearby would be looking for this creature since it was very well acclimated to humans, I scooped him up and into the safety of my backyard.

Unfortunately, after much searching, it became apparent that Bunnypants (as I named him) had either been abandoned, strayed very far from home, or his owners weren’t looking all that hard. I was tempted to keep the sweet, fluffy bundle of joy, but my doggie Lola couldn’t seem to think of him as friend rather than food or foe. I’m very grateful to the Arizona Humane Society, who came to my rescue after Bunnypants’ five-day stay at my makeshift Bunny B&B and assured me that they would find him a good home.

Inspired by our happenstance friendship, I created the painting Some Bunny to Love. In addition to the likeness of Bunnypants, the painting features a bunny-ears prickly pear cactus in the background, including a few heart-shaped prickly pear pads that they often tend to grow in real life and one lonely but lovely cactus blossom.

I had the opportunity to show my artwork at Mood Room in Phoenix, and my painting Network will be on display at their Park Central locale through February 6. I am very grateful for the extra effort that Artlink is putting into promoting artists during this difficult time.

On a final art-related note, I have some incredibly exciting news! My painting Midcentury Magnate was selected by the Phoenix Airport Museum to hang in a juried exhibition of works by Arizona Watercolor Association artists. They received 165 entries for this show, and accepted just 26. I am truly so honored to have been chosen for this opportunity. The show will be on display at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport in Terminal 4, Level 3 from February 26, 2021, through September 24, 2021.

Overall the January weather was lovely and in the 60’s - 70’s, with some much-needed rain, some dramatic clouds, and even two episodes of hail, and weekends were spent on varied rockhounding adventures. We explored defunct mining areas near Wickenburg and Superior, continued our search for the largest Apache tear on record, sought out sparkly fire agates, and definitely scored a few cool finds!

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Flighty but Mighty 10x14”, Gouache on 140 lb. Arches Hot Press Watercolor Paper For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase. — *Flighty but Mighty*
10x14”, Gouache on 140 lb. Arches Hot Press Watercolor Paper
For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase.

Mediterrane-Hen 3x2”, Gouache on Paper SOLD. — *Mediterrane-Hen*
3x2”, Gouache on Paper
SOLD.

Egg-Spresso 3x2”, Gouache on Paper SOLD. — *Egg-Spresso*
3x2”, Gouache on Paper
SOLD.

Hot Chicken 3x2”, Gouache on Paper For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase. — *Hot Chicken*
3x2”, Gouache on Paper
For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase.

Beach Comb-er 3x2”, Gouache on Paper SOLD. — *Beach Comb-er*
3x2”, Gouache on Paper
SOLD.

Free Range O-Ranges 3x2”, Gouache on Paper For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase. — *Free Range O-Ranges*
3x2”, Gouache on Paper
For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase.

Egg Plant 3x2”, Gouache on Paper For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase. — *Egg Plant*
3x2”, Gouache on Paper
For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase.

Meditate-Hen 5x7”, Gouache and Watercolor on 140 lb. Arches Hot Press Watercolor Paper For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase. — Meditate-Hen
5x7”, Gouache and Watercolor on 140 lb. Arches Hot Press Watercolor Paper
For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase.

Some Bunny to Love 10x8”, Gouache and Watercolor on 140 lb. Arches Hot Press Watercolor Paper For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase. — *Some Bunny to Love*
10x8”, Gouache and Watercolor on 140 lb. Arches Hot Press Watercolor Paper
For sale as of this blog post - visit my online shop to purchase.

Shop for art now ›

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