Spring at East Otter Studio
Spring has arrived at East Otter Studio, and I’ve been spring-cleaning inside and out — clearing out corners, sweeping the barn studio, letting the fresh air move through everything. Spring here is always bittersweet. The temperatures bounce like a roller-coaster, rising and falling as quickly as our creek after a storm. Still, it’s a thrill to see the first blades of spring grass pushing through.
Out on the wooden trails, I’ve been working with the horses again, especially Chief, helping him remember the rhythm of the woods after winter. Morel mushrooms have begun to appear, tucked into the grass near the old elm trees. This week we found a dozen, cleaned them, and fried them for dinner — the first true taste of spring. Signs of turkeys, pheasants, and deer scatter the woods like little reminders that everything is waking up.
Back in early March, Tim and I gave ourselves a jump-start on spring with a trip to Las Vegas. The shift from our gentle country noises to a glitzy desert city was…dramatic. But the surprise gift of the trip was Tule Springs Ranch on the outskirts of Vegas — a quiet, unexpected treasure.
It’s a public ranch where people can picnic, fish, walk the trails, or ride horseback. In so many ways, it reminded me of the quiet I find along East Otter Creek. I kept wondering if city folks come there for the same reason I paint and walk my land — to find a slice of peace, a breath of stillness, a place where the noise falls away.
From that wondering came a seed of a story — a Las Vegas dancer drawn to the peacefulness of Tule Springs Ranch. In the gentleness of that place, she remembers who she is. She has a moment where her life begins to bloom again.
That moment became the heart of my newest painting: Where Stillness Finds Her (Tule Springs Ranch). This mini collection grows out of my love for florals and cactus — the soft and the strong, the bloom and the thorn. And now, I’ve tried something new: a portrait.
I must confess: this shift feels like a nudging from God. A quiet invitation to paint the deeper things He’s been whispering.
As spring unfolds here at East Otter — in the creek, the woods, the barn studio —I’m leaning into this new season of art. If you’d like to follow along as this mini collection grows, or if you’re curious about the stories behind each piece, I’d love to share more with you.
If this story resonates, come walk with me through this new mini collection as it blooms — and until my next travels, may beauty meet you in unexpected places.