Lately, I’ve been feeling like I’m living in a bad dystopian movie… but not in the middle of the action. More like I’m just an extra in the “calm before the storm” scene, where everything feels oddly normal, but something ominous is building in the background.

I’ve been seeking out peaceful spaces for as long as I can remember. One stand-out childhood memory is hiding beneath a big weeping willow tree, protected by the curtain of leaves, sunlight filtering through. It felt like

I’ve discovered a wonderfully geeky corner of the internet, and I am completely hooked. It’s an app called iNaturalist, and though it’s been sitting on my phone for quite a while, I only recently figured out how much fun (and how useful) it really is.

For years, people have asked me how I create my artwork. I usually explain that I start with a collage base on wood panel, add gesso, transfer my own photos using acrylic medium, and then build up layers with colored pencil, paint, and more collage.

My artwork often features natural specimens, everything from butterflies, skulls, and nests to shells, bits of wood, and even the occasional dehydrated reptile. Sometimes they appear as standalone elements, and other times I arrange them into still-life tableaus.