The majority of the works were created under the influence of summer, from May through July and so became more and more reflective of the the sensory overloads of the season.
A thousand shades of green, long shadows and changing light, birdsong, soaring temperatures, and the smell of smoke from forest fires in New Mexico and beyond were always present.
It was a particularly focused and intense period of time in my studio. Early mornings and late nights, sometimes stormy or sweltering, I worked with windows and doors open, preferring the sounds, and smells of my surroundings to that of my air conditioner. Acutely aware of climate change, I became sentimental for summers past, real or imagined. I isolated and insulated myself from the outside world – its news and noise and anxiety evoking distractions. I craved routine and “less” of everything but the work. I stopped listening to the radio, or even music. I didn’t miss it. I didn’t have room for it, with summer playing out around me.
