Meet the Stars of “Dancing Sunburst Locust”

One of the best things about living in Idaho is the incredibly beautiful and diverse landscape. Driving is a way of life in this rural state, and winding my way through desert river canyons and high mountain valleys since childhood has impacted me with a love of the landscape. I love the feeling that the countryside tells a story, knows the history of those who've come before me, and it always seems to me that the landscape is beckoning me to stop and hear the tales the land tells.

Many of my mosaic light paintings are inspired by this mystery. On my recent drive home to McCall from the capital, Boise, I was stopped in my tracks by this community of Sunburst Locust, immediately drawn to their bright orange moss-covered trunks just as I was the day I stopped and felt the inspiration for the mosaic light painting "Dancing Sunburst Locust". Their splayed limbs and branches remind me of dancers stretching into each other and the hillside.

Back in the studio in McCall, I created two pieces inspired by these trees: "Dancing Sunburst Locust" and "Sunburst Locust" :

I've also created "Dancing Sunburst Locust" as a two-sided print on translucent paper, so the light shines through the back-to-back images, much like the original mosaic light painting.

These pieces are all available in my online shop. "Dancing Sunburst Locust" is currently on view at Roots Market in Garden City, ID: