“It’s incredible how magical the desert is when you go with the intention of self-reflection,” says Colorado artist Anna Rose Bain, who began a tradition of taking solo trips to the California desert when she was struggling with severe adrenal fatigue just before the start of COVID.

“I found that I was getting burnt out at least twice a year, to a point where it was affecting my health and my relationships,” says Bain, who balances painting with raising two young children and practicing CrossFit, a high-intensity fitness program. “I started going to the desert to recharge and meditate and paint, and it’s really helped me come back with so much more motivation to make art and take care of others and myself.”

Read the full article in the July/August 2022 issue.

King of the Wild Things

Oil
30″ by 30″

“My 3-year-old son modeled for this painting and, at this stage of life, he is certainly a ‘wild thing!’ I wanted his expression to display a mixture of audacity and vulnerability. I also wanted to show the beauty of letting children be free in their element. Let them play with sticks, let them get dirty, let them be bored so they can use their imaginations. These moments are gone in an instant.”

The Valley Patriarch

Oil
24″ by 42″

“I spend as much time as I can during the summer and fall exploring Rocky Mountain National Park, which is just an hour and a half from my home. Every September during the rut, the elk put on a show for park visitors, and they often venture close to the roads and more populated areas. I was lucky enough to get some great photo references one day that I later took back to my studio to begin ‘composing.’ I wanted to make a painting that had an interesting visual narrative, not just because it was a painting of some elk, but because every piece of light, every tree and rock, and every blade of grass, was placed there with intention.”