GROUNDED

Grounded - adj. “to feel present in your body and connected with the earth, time, and place.”

My roots run deep in the place where I was raised. My father, grandfather, and great-grandfather were raised near the home where I grew up and now live. That same experience is being given to my children and their cousins. Similarly, my husband often recalls fond childhood memories of his family farm, and grieves its loss when they moved South over two decades ago. So when I drive through Jones Valley, a century old, multi-generational farm that lies in the heart of our city, I feel a deep connection to what it means to be grounded by a sense of place.

With time, change is inevitable and as this beautiful valley is slowly developed, I wanted to play a part in preserving this place as we will always remember it. With special permission of the family, I gathered soil samples from the farm and processed the dirt into three colors of pigment. Combining these pigments with either watercolor or acrylic mediums, I used these lovely earth tones to paint with, letting them shine on their own or adding color over the top. I love the poetry of place in this piece. This beautiful landscape is grounded by the very ground for which it depicts.

Now you can collect a piece of history preserved through a unique work of art.



Painted with Soil

THE PROCESS

With permission from the family, I collected small samples of dirt from various sites around Jones Farm. Selecting three different colors, the dirt was washed several times to remove organic matter. Then it was strained, dried, ground, and sifted for use with painting mediums. Through the process of “mulling,” the paint is pulverized between two layers of glass, becoming smooth for application.

In the Original series, the acrylic painting begins with a monochromatic underpainting of values (lights and darks). The subsequent layers are enhanced by allowing windows of the underlayer to peek through, adding depth and character. The earth tone pigments I foraged are the perfect complimentary colors to those found in the landscape and I used them to build up the values as well as add texture. Color was then applied by layers of acrylic paint.

In the Monochrome series, I chose to focus on the values (lights and darks) of the pigments, using watercolor as my medium for the landscape. The sienna, umber, and ochre pigments are on full display in this piece, providing both value and texture in the final product.

For Grounded 2.0, I took my inspiration from a photo my 13yo captured as we drove down Carl T. Jones one day nearing sunset. The clouds were spectacular that day and we were treated with a field full of cows as well! Following the same process as the Original series, the underpainting is created with a soil layer followed by acrylics on top.

  • GROUNDED: Original

  • GROUNDED: Original

  • GROUNDED: Monochrome

  • GROUNDED: Monochrome

  • GROUNDED 2.0

  • GROUNDED 2.0

  • GROUNDED Mini

  • GROUNDED Mini

Preorder Grounded

These special paintings are made available in limited run preorders in various formats. My email subscribers receive first access to new releases. Sign up below!

  • 4x4 Mini, 4x6 Original and 2.0, 8x10 Original and 2.0, 11x14 2.0

  • Grounded is created with acrylic paint on linen textured paper

    Grounded: Monochrome is created with watercolor and white gouache

    Grounded 2.0 is created with acrylic paint on linen textured paper

    Grounded Mini is created with watercolor and gouache on #300 watercolor paper

  • I offer hand torn edges on 4x6 size artwork for elegant float mounting to an 8x10 frame. The 8x10 size will come with standard cut edges. 4x4s are standard cut edges on sturdy #300 paper.