Edition Type: Limited-Edition Fine-Art Collectible Edition Size: 25
Edition Price Tier: Tier 2
About My Pricing Edition Print Sizes: 12x18 & above
Original Artist’s Proof: A.P. 1/1 - AVAILABLE & ready to custom print
Contact artist for a quote Other Information: Lifetime Warranty & Guarantee Narrative: “There are moments when all jagged anxieties and inner turmoil are soothed in the eroded character, leisure and repose of nature. In the eroding badlands of my soul’s topography and spirit’s evolving palette, I yearn for such weathered and colored tranquil brilliance found only in continuing my ego’s release.” ~ Jack Mountain
One of the more heavily visited and photographed places hidden within the desolate beauty of California’s Death Valley National Park, along the Black Mountains, lies a place of vivid and surreal artistry: Artists Palette. This geological wonder is a testament to the captivating forces of nature that have painted the Earth’s canvas over millennia. It is renowned for its kaleidoscope of colors, a symphony of reds, pinks, greens, and purples that adorns the rock formations like the strokes of an artist’s brush. These striking hues are primarily the result of various mineral deposits in the soil, creating a vibrant tapestry on the landscape. The dominant minerals responsible for this stunning display are iron, mica, and manganese, each lending its unique color to the palette. As a result of tectonic activity and volcanic eruptions millions of years ago. As molten rock, or magma, rose to the surface, it interacted with the surrounding rock layers. These interactions caused chemical reactions that led to the formation of various minerals, and the colors we see today are a result of these geological processes. Over time, erosion sculpted the rocks into the shapes we admire today. Artists Palette serves as a reminder of the dynamic and ever-evolving nature of our planet. It’s a canvas that continues to change, with the colors shifting and intensifying over time due to ongoing geological processes. And when the sun sets and the desert sky deepens in color, Artists Palette reveals new layers and hues of its enchanting personality.
With so many people, usually at sunset, it’s not easy to feel solitary here and find connection in the soft multi-layered and colored eroding badland forms between both inner and outer landscapes – Unless you break ranks and wander among the various forms below. Even then, it can be difficult to find new compelling compositions that haven’t been done before, or have people in them. After many visits over the years, I’ve produced the typical beautiful shots with my own flair, but not to the point of finding my own personal experience to the landscape. It was going to require a different kind of effort on my part, coupled with a different kind of lighting not commonly worked with here, to finally find my mojo with these badland forms.
On a recent wintered, wet, and cold journey here, uncharacteristic of the area, I finally had the conditions needed to produce some true artwork of the soul – both in what I needed to release from the ego within and what I needed from the surrounding light and air atmosphere to provide. With the poor weather dampening the spirits of others, I found I had the place more to myself than usual, allowing me to really wander solitary and connect. Under such wet and overcast conditions, the light allowed me to have smooth diffused and wet lighting for very even exposures that naturally saturate and punctuate the available colors in the greatly varied palette. With light that was perfect yet in a rush of going away, I was able to work this landscape for a short time, but with great connection.
