I never thought of myself as “artistic” and spent most of my early life avoiding anything remotely art-related. But in 2001, out of necessity as a newly obsessed botany enthusiast (soon to be field botanist), I started sketching plants while looking through a microscope. A few weekend classes followed, but it wasn’t until 2023—faced with caring and grieving for my spouse as she rapidly lost her cognitive abilities—that I decided to get serious about drawing as a means of self-care. That’s when I found AWE.
Having spent half of my adult life on the Baja California peninsula, the way I experience the world has been greatly influenced by the contradictions inherent to that arid place. The many contrasts that exist in its vast desert draw me in: the seemingly barren landscape teeming with life, from the Lilliputian to the colossal; the juxtaposition of desert where it meets the sea; the stark shift from blinding sunlight to deep, cool shadows; and even the subtle contrasts found within the myriad earth tones of rock, plant and soil. I still endeavor to capture these contrasts in photographs, but now also embrace graphite pencil as another form of expression.
