Little Horse Canyon I

I have always been drawn to deserts, drawing their cracked and hardened surfaces with beauty rising up from them since high school. I especially love these tight narrow passageways where you get some relief from the heat and can see the lines, evidence of water rushing through those walls, over 100’s of years. I recently read slot canyons are viewed by the Navajo as a place where the spiritual and physical world connect. The waves and strokes are said to be carved by moments of grief and the beauty is a result of loss. This is a painting I did after hiking Little Wild Horse Canyon in Utah shortly after the loss of my Papou(grandfather) so it makes perfect sense that I could feel its history, pain, comfort and magic.