Patuxent Research Refuge in Spring

The Patuxent Research Refuge is a beautiful swath of nature in the megapolis between Baltimore and DC. Composed of about 20 square miles of forests, marshlands, and small lakes, it's a crucial area for waterfowl and other animals in the region. Unlike many of our nation's national parks, this refuge has also thankfully not been completely overrun by tourists, nor has it been threatened by wildfires or other devastating effects of climate change. Here, we look through the trees, some still flowering, at one of the Refuge's lakes on a sunny day in late April.

Acrylic painting; 14" x 17"

Swampy Spring Sunshine

 

A look ahead a month or so into early spring, when the trees are leafing out, the dandelions are blooming, and the redbuds light up the woods with purple-pink flowers. Rain is plentiful, combined with snowmelt in the colder climates, resulting in a mix of soggy earth and sunny skies. It's beautiful to look at, but a mess to hike through if you leave the paved trails!

Acrylic painting: 14" x 17"

Crossroads of Winter

Winter is a season of contrasts and changes, marked by the passage of time. One year passes to another, the weather wanders between harmless and brutal, and fiery skies oppose the frozen earth. Here, in a wooded park after a modest snowfall, we stand at the crossroads of winter, contemplating the various paths in all directions and marveling at the eerie contrast around us.

Acrylic painting: 14" x 17" (SOLD)

Grandfather Mountain - autumn evening

In early October, I visited my brother and his family down in Charlotte, NC. While I was down there, we all took a day trip out to see Grandfather Mountain, a well-known site in western North Carolina. This impressive mountain has a double peak that is over a mile in elevation; while it was cloudy that day, it was still a great trip. We saw huge rocks, countless trees starting to turn fall colors, and hiked up a rocky trail to the swinging bridge near the top that is about a mile up. At the peak, even with the clouds, you can feel just how rugged and remote a place it is. We finished up at the visitor's center, which was large and very well maintained, complete with a cafeteria, museum, gift shop, and occasional live animal demos. This painting captures the rugged, split peak of this famous mountain in its autumn colors. If you're ever in the area of Grandfather Mountain, it is well-worth a visit.

Acrylic painting: 14" x 17"

Autumn Aspen Climb

Aspen trees are a symbol of the mountain west in America; these beautiful pioneer trees form massive groves across middle elevations and cooler climates. The root systems can live for centuries, and they turn a distinctive golden color in the fall. Aspens are also rather challenging to paint. Their bright golden leaves risk disappearing against the sky, hence the need for strong blues and darker mountains, and the pale bark of the trees offers little contrast against the yellow foliage. Finally, the bark patterns are distinctive and the technically white bark really reflects colors around it and should never be painted stark white. In all, they are beautiful, symbolic, and tough trees to paint well; I hope this painting has captured their majesty accurately.

Acrylic painting: 14" x 17"

Moonlit Swamp

Beneath a pair of full moons on a far off plane of existence, light glimmers across the shallow pools and squishy mud of a vast swamp. Spreading reeds and ancient trees grow from the mire in a constant struggle between growth and decay. Fireflies dance around the tree roots and grasses, oblivious to the eerie gloom. Part of my MTG: basic lands series.

Acrylic painting: 14" x 17"

Defiant Spring

Along a muddy forest path, the cherry trees bloom under a cold, cloudy sky. Though winter seems unwilling to give up its grasp, spring flowers bloom in defiance of the gloom.

Acrylic painting: 14" x 17"

March Snow in the Woods

It has been a reasonably cold winter this year with a large number of small storms passing through the region, though most of them produced nothing but flurries or chilly drizzle. The exception came in late February and early March, when a modest snowfall coated much of the area as a surprise reminder that winter was not yet finished. The day after the snow is depicted in this painting - already, the sun is glowing through the trees and melting the snow away.

Acrylic painting: 14" x 17"