About the work

In this mixed-media piece, I have created a painterly version of Colorado inspired by the state's nature-derived symbols. Here, fluid washes of paint swirl and connect to form the state, in reference to the transparent greenish-blue hues of the state gemstone, aquamarine, which is derived from the Latin word for "seawater." Completing the work is a background featuring impasto applications of paint, with striations in colors that mimic the blue and gray markings of the state insect, the Colorado hairstreak butterfly.