I’m happy to say that I achieved a goal I set for myself earlier this year: I finished fifteen six-inch-by-six-inch paintings about Texas. All of these paintings are the result of my traveling, hiking, and camping across the state. They are landscapes and creature portraits, discovered through exploration.

I so much enjoy adventuring around Texas that I expect I’ll continue that work with an emphasis on city and state parks. I’m considering ways that I might partner with parks institutions to use my art to further education, community outreach, and conservation efforts.

I count myself lucky to have grown up next to an untouched forest, and raised by parents who allowed me the freedom to explore it on my own. My father had been a biology teacher and enjoyed telling me the names of plants, birds, and animals. My environment was rich with life, and I saw it.

I hope to bring that life to you through my art. I hope to remind myself and others that finding something new, a new perspective, a better mood, clarity, can be as simple as going for a walk.

Speaking of going for a walk… three of these paintings are currently on display as part of the “Let’s Take A Walk” group show at Art For The People on South 1st Street in Austin. If you’re in town, you should check out this little gallery/shop for holiday gifts (it is jam-packed with art and housewares from fifty Austinites). Come out and support your local artists.

Happy holiday-gift-hunting!