Works on Canvas

A view from my front deck and just across Lands Creek in a portion of our land that is in the permanent easement we have with the state of North Carolina. The view and my painting of it give me great joy!

This depiction is of the view you would have seen from the ridge which is now part of the Blue Ridge Parkway. It is virtually the same that the Beloved Man of the Cherokees (2013 and the first to be so honored in over 200 years), Jerry Wolfe, saw and grew up in – a small cabin just above the Ravensford Tract of the Cherokee Motherland. Cover painting for Smokies Life Journal (Fall 2024).

The wetland areas are so important for so many reasons, one being a landing spot for migrating waterfowl and a home to water and shore resident birds, other animals, and insects. The wetlands are also beautiful with the vegetation that thrives only in that type of habitat.

It is interesting to me that May colors often seem to look similar to those in September when foliage leafs out as it climbs the ridges and valleys in these mountains. The view from this lower elevation toward Black Rock and Waterrock Knob is one that catches the eye in every season but perhaps is savored most in winter and early spring.

LinaBlue and I walk past these rain puddles almost everyday. At least one snapping turtle lives in the mud – we have seen it on the edge of the water and watched it burrow into the mud. I met a Cherokee woman on one walk and we walked together to the parking area. She told me how spiritual it feels for her to walk the Motherland there at Kituwah and she told me she sees the snapping turtle which she thinks is a female and has named her Molly. She was easy to be with and I loved listening to her while LinaBlue explored the road edges for signs of other dog visitations.

These Red-winged Blackbirds were part of a huge flock migrating through the fields and along the slough at Kituwah. Their calls and chatter filled the air and they were in such number that they decorated bare limbs in early March especially along the water. It made me wonder if, after being in different parts of the country for winter, the ones that would move further North and the ones who will remain in the area were exchanging news and/or gossip. Fun to ponder on anyway.

The Tuckaseigee River runs through the small town of Bryson City, joining other streams, on its journey to the Gulf of Mexico. It flows past my studio window and if I happen to look out, there are often fishing boats where even if the fishing is slow, the scenery is lovely.

Elk were native to the Smokies (as well as other regions in the Southern Appalachians) and have been successfully reintroduced here. Elk like the open fields for grazing more than they like the densely forested ridges of the National Park and so are often seen in the fields at Cherokee's Oconaluftee Visitor's Center which is only a few miles from Kituwah. And so we who visit the fields at Kituwah are often treated to sights of them. For instance, on one of our walks, I saw 5 mature bulls with their impressive antlers just out of the fields alongside the highway. Sort of intimidating but Lina and I just continued walking trying not to infuriate them as I understand them to be unpredictable. The painting depicted here I consider one of my most beautiful efforts. I wanted to paint a ghost-like image of an elk as I often feel their presence when I am on my walks at Kituwah and if you look carefully in the treeline, the imaginary elk is in the deep blue of the slough that cuts through the fields here.

There are connecting roads, some of which have been graveled, that encircle the fields at Kituwah. All of the various bands of the Cherokee consider Kituwah to be the Motherland of the tribe. There is a remnant of a ceremonial mound that is protected at this point and is sacred to the Cherokee and should be treated as such by all visitors to the fields. The public is allowed access to Kituwah but asked to stay on the roads and to control their dogs(s) if they bring them there to walk as I do my GSP LinaBlue. The road depicted in my painting has never been graveled and thus the footing is fairly uneven and not as well traveled as the others. It is our favorite road of course. This road leads (in this view) from the barns and old silos to the slough crossing where it connects with the better maintained roads. Whenever I choose to walk here I think about a vision I had a few years ago when driving the 4-lane from Bryson City toward Sylva. I saw in my imagination Cherokee natives descending from the mountain ridges that overlook Kituwah moving toward their Motherland. It was a very powerful vision that almost made me weep. I had to snap out of that and put my mind back to driving but it has stayed with me clearly ever since and I cherish the memory.

It should not be surprising that the fencing in my pasture and around my garden is random and haphazardly done. I like to think it adds character but it probably only shows that I fence when the horse breaks in, and it is done in haste, and then he breaks in somewhere else, and so it goes becoming more and more random.

Waxwings can show up anywhere and if you have holly trees with berries on them you will probably get waxwings who will strip the trees of fruit very quickly. Walking at Kituwah on two separate days this winter I saw waxwings busily doing just this. The second time there was a much irritated (at me) red-shouldered hawk on his perch also watching the waxwings and waiting for an opportune moment to do what a hawk does.

My garden may appear chaotic, but it harbors life for a lot of critters and gives me pleasure when I walk past. I find it perfect.

My daughter, Quintin Ellison, captured this beautiful image of nesting Great Blues beside an overpass on the four-lane (74 East/West) and I often see them posing in the scrubby sycamores there. I do not think they were permanent residents of this area until about the last 10 years or so. We often saw the immature birds in the field across from our house and creek. I see them frequently now when they visit to fish the creek, but I think they only nest on rivers or maybe alongside Fontana Lake.

Gregory Bald is renowned as a destination in the Great Smokies to steep your soul in the beauty of the wild azaleas that flourish there. I chose only to do homage to the Flame Azalea to be greeted by Eos, Greek Goddess of Dawn. I know Eos is associated with roses, but this dawn beamed on the Smokies and our Flame Azaleas.

And I sing with him, at this moment, in this place, everything is perfect!

The simple beauty of the Swamp Milkweed is enhanced by a Monarch Butterfly (also known as the Milkweed Butterfly) which depends on the milkweed for its continued existence.

Again I paint the trail on our place. On the left is a part of the trail you ascend to on the high ridge, then the middle section is the spur trail which you travel down and make a right bend to drop down into our valley. LinaBlue is the shorthair seen in the portion on the right. She is camouflaged so she can surprise birds and all other creatures that she might choose to play with. She is from hunting stock but in reality is part of the family and not really a hunter at all.

As the song line goes, "These are the days of miracles and wonder" as really every day should be celebrated. The painting is intended to be a view into Graveyard Fields, which is just off the Blue Ridge Parkway, and into the lower of the two waterfalls in the Fields.

In Greek and Roman mythology a place in eternity for those favored by the Gods. For those of us who dwell in the Southern Appalachians, we are dwelling in Fields of Glory surrounded by mountains and those who visit these mountains share in the glory that is all around.

The fall season, both for the landscape and for its inhabitants, can be a dreary one for some, but, for me, it is a time for celebration. All the work is done for the continuation of life and there is much satisfaction in that, not to mention the beauty of the transition.

The words to Van Morrison's song so perfectly describe the way Kenneth Wike lived. A good person who did right by everyone I know who had dealings with him. We had some good horseback riding adventures and his spirit still lives in the small cove he called home.

A great view of the bend from Highway 28 Franklin toward Highway 74 in Swain County. You really cannot see the left side of the bend so the view needs a painter to reveal it.

I love the beauty of Anakeesta rock (and the name). Many of the rock outcroppings in the Smokies are Anakeesta. This painting is based on such an outcropping, Charlie's Bunion. I ground bits of the rock and glued it onto my canvas. The day is quietly losing the light and becoming another day.

The shadows describe the light in a nearly flat portion of our trail before it climbs again. In a bit I will be looking into the Great Smokies National Park. About as close as one can get to Heaven, I would say.

I always associate daisy fields with over-used and often abandoned property. This painting is sort of melancholy, but also brings back good country memories to all of us who have lived in the rural South.

When a painter is in the midst of a pandemic, there is a need to seek birdsong — virtually as well as in reality. So I share the virtual with you, hoping it will bring beauty and a bit of cheer.

Our land has been described as "steep to rolling," and I have mulled that description over for years and indeed it is true – just about 2 acres or less could be described as flat out of 46-plus acres. Steep to rolling – pretty.

This part of our trail is a bit of a climb as the trail swings up the ridge and then back into the saddle where the narrow ridge straddles our valley and the riverbed of the Tuckaseigee. This is a good place to catch one's breath and admire the mountains all around.

I often plan my work on my morning walks along our horse trail, and October colors lend an extra glory to these physical and mental excursions.

On a Sunday, in the forest near Wayah Bald, the smell and feel of coolness, the rays of light reminding us of the natural powers that control our existence.

I love this view of the Gorge. Everything appears diminished when juxtaposed with the massive mountains towering over the riverbed as the landscape is cut by the power of water. Puts things into perspective when you gaze down into this perfect place.

How does it make you feel when you are near bamboo, cattails, and the creatures who live or visit there? It just makes me want to breathe deeply and smell the air.

This is a view of Bryson City, not totally realistic, but still recognizable. It is really about the light, which is sometimes incredible, breaking from cloud cover and reflecting colors in the landscape. The play of light in the mountains is one of the most fascinating things about mountain living and helps remind us to value where we live.

I have a fascination with light and color and never tire of seeing where it will take me in my work.

This special place is a damp area in The Great Smoky Mountains National Park along the Deep Creek trail. There are many such areas in these mountains or, if you live in the right climate zone, you can create your own.

This painting is based on a bank down the path from our house. We have protected it from my horses and it has rewarded us with lush blooms and a beautiful habitat for both the flowers and the birds.

I often walk along this road and never tire of the light on the ridges along the river/lake. The bare tree on the left is sometimes almost covered by water when the Tuckaseigee River becomes Fontana Lake. I think it is a black willow and it still seems to survive – so this painting is partially a song to the tree, which bears witness to the changing river levels and to the seasonal changes. It is also a song in celebration of fall color.

I painted this piece to express my wonder and delight in the fleeting light that I often see on my morning walks. This is a fall celebration but the light is often also incredible in winter and in early spring. When it happens, no matter the season, tree trunks appear like woodland sentinels and I am transported.

The haiku is by my soul-mate, George Ellison. This painting is inspired by a rock-climbing/hopping trek up The Tuckaseigee Gorge. It is where Bonus Defeat is located and is an awe inspiring gorge formed by nature using the force of water.

Ah the lovely sycamore! This one stands alongside the Tuckaseigee River just east of Bryson City. Should you drive the old highway that runs just along the river, you will often see a red-tailed hawk keeping his vigil among the naked limbs of this sycamore.

Schoolhouse Falls is a small waterfall in Panthertown Valley — I think around 20 feet or so but it is so lovely. Because of the colors and the mysterious glow to the painting, it looks like a setting in a much earlier century and that fascinates me.

This is from a picture George took of me walking a road on our property, which is almost unrecognizable because of the snow-weighted trees. What drew me to paint this were the lovely colors as sunlight flooded the winter landscape. I still remember that day and that jacket I was wearing.

I love the light in winter woods and the contrast with earth tones in rocks and/or soil. Winter was long the year I painted this, but the contrasts were still there and it was a pleasure to try to paint how they made me feel.

Don't we all need such beauty after a cold, wet winter?

I did the watercolor of our valley for the cover of MOUNTAIN PASSAGES and wanted to revisit the idea in oil. It has been a haven for many years and we like to feel that we have been a fitting partner to the land and all it represents. Things may change, but for this moment, this day we are surrounded by glorious beauty.

I love painting water and reflections of sky and clouds. I always try to catch movement but I think water in motion is not ever truly captured. How could it be?

I tried to keep the horse and rider dreamy to enhance the feeling of those wine and roses days whatever they may be to anyone. The field of Queen Anne's Lace, an ordinary roadside and waste area flower, which so many of us love is the real focus.

The Protector of our valley is not Thunderbird, but a female Marsh Hawk. The spirit hawk glides over our valley and rises above the ridges where the forest grows. We feel the rush of her wings when the wind blows from the west and we rejoice to have her with us always.

The warm colors of fall inspired me to return to the rural landscape where i grew up and which lives on in my imagination. In my mind anything is possible and it makes me happy to think about bright colors, happy horses, happy cows and a bit of a fire in the big house. And just look at that happy sky!

This is a scene we often see from our dining area in early spring. Must be an extended family as the first year birds stay around for a while to help out. There are many shades of red and ochre in the birds, but here I kept all the birds more colorful. They make you feel that way even if some are of duller hue.

We often bird the fields at Kituwah and can feel the sacred nature of these acres that are the Motherland of the Cherokee Nation. The barns were there before the Cherokee bought back this land to preserve it for the people so they will not forget who they are and what they stand for and will not lose their reverence for the natural world.

The concentric circles in the center of the shield symbolize the Plains Indians' belief that all things in the universe are interconnected in a divine and harmonious fashion. In this painting, the circles are depicted as broken. We have the profound feeling, and even knowledge, that all things in the universe are no longer in divine harmony.

Good friends sent me a vase of flowers for my birthday and I felt compelled to paint their gift in celebration of Vincent Van Gogh's short life and shorter painting career - just 10 years.I used his direct way of attacking the canvas with lots of pigment and a wet-in-wet technique. I used a painting knife mostly and it was a revelation to me how bright the dark background makes the flowers appear.

When young William Blake saw a tree filled with angels, he wrote "The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way. Some see Nature all ridicule and deformity, and some scarce see nature at all. But to the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself."

The crow and pine are emblems of the spirit of winter, and winds bring the song of this spirit to those of us who pause to look and listen.

My friend Ann Smith loves bamboo and has planted rather many areas of clumping bamboo and here there was a stiff wind and birds were seeking shelter among the swaying bamboo canes. Ann incorporates canes and leaves of the bamboo in her fine art assemblages; and we have even made paper from the canes themselves, which we each use in our art work.

This is from a scene I painted on location (in watercolor) at the filming of the movie “Songcatcher.”