love notes to the desert

“We sleep by Elegante Crater...The courtship flight of a hummingbird right before me as I sprawl on the ground, the tiny animal inscribing huge ellipses against the sky. The night pulling across my face like velvet, the coyotes singing...This is one of the few places on earth where I have heard the stars , a low humming as they slowly swing from horizon to horizon ”

— CHARLES BOWDEN

The Sonoran Desert

The Sonoran Twilight collection is almost ready to share with you!

This collection will be the THIRD in an ongoing Tea-Dyed Desert series. I find it so incredibly cool that these little paintings have been scattered across the USA. A couple have even traveled to Canada. One to France! I’m so happy that I can share my love of all things “Desert-y” with others (ummm, please give me all of the colors, textures, crazy shapes and silhouettes. Thank you).

Growing up, I spent a lot of time in the Sonoran Desert- a desert that covers 100,000 square miles including areas of the Southwestern US, Baja California, and Northwestern Mexico. My family and I traveled through a lot of it as part of my parents tourism business. We also lived in Ajo, Arizona for a few years. Our property backed up right to the desert and I can remember my brothers and I spending a lot of time exploring during the day and listening to the coyotes while watching the stars at night. Night in the desert is really something else - 10 out of 10, would recommend.

The last few days, as I’ve been putting the finishing touches on these babes, I’ve also been doing a little research. What do you think of when you hear the word "desert"? A simple search online for "desert quotes" or "desert poems" doesn't seem to cast a very positive light on the word. Hot, cruel, lonely, dry, lost, desolate… the list of unflattering words goes on and on. A lot of the history associated with the desert is rough, tough and not necessarily “light reading”. It's true, the Sonoran Desert is one tough cookie, but despite that fact, there is life and beauty in abundance.

It's easy to write about how gorgeous the desert is from the comfort of my A/C, right? But when you really get into it, it is such a fascinating place. The variety of trees - Mesquite, Ironwood, Palo Verde- and so many bushes. Giant cacti and tiny cacti and every size in-between. Some plant life is rooted deep deep DEEP in order to drink from invisible wells. And some have roots that are shallow but spread wide in order to gather up every drop of rain in the vicinity. The spring flowers always feel like a surprise when they show up. And the animals. So many animals. Various shades of earth, sharp mountains, craters, volcanoes & lava rock from when the earth was young... I am HERE FOR IT!

The words that come to my mind now when I think "desert" are; mysterious, extraordinary, wild, and at times, even lush. My hope with this collection of tea-dyed paintings is to capture just a bit of that magic for you to keep.

XO

Bethany