Desert Waterlines- PLAYA Residency

Summer Lake Waterlines \| Summer, Summer Precipitation 2004-2014, oil paint and silverleaf on panel, 7" x 11", 2016 Collection of Grano Bakery and Market	Summer Lake Waterlines \| Spring Summer Lake Waterlines \| Spring, Spring Precipitation 2004-2014 oil and silver leaf on panel 7" x 11" 2015 Collection of Shawn Demarest	Summer Lake Waterlines \| Winter Winter Precipitation 2004-2014 oil and silver leaf on panel 7" x 11" 2015 Collection of Liz Ahl
Summer Lake Waterlines \| Fall oil and silver leaf on panel 7" x 11" 2015 Collection of Judith Rodby	Summer Lake Waterlines Oil and silver leaf on panel 2015 64"x10" Collection of Deirdre Donahue	Summer Lake Waterlines Oil and silver leaf on panel 2015 64"x10" Collection of Deirdre Donahue
Summer Lake Waterlines Oil and silver leaf on panel 2015 64"x10" Collection of Deirdre Donahue	Summer Lake Waterlines Oil and silver leaf on panel 2015 64"x10" Collection of Deirdre Donahue	Summer Lake Study Plate 4 Fig 15.1 Silverpoint and playa clay on panel 7.5" x11" 2015
Summer Lake Study Plate 1 Fig. 1.15 Silverpoint, salt, playa crust and graphite on wood panel 2015 Collection of William Roach	Summer Lake Study Plate 2 Fig. 1.15 Silverpoint, salt, playa crust and graphite on wood panel 2015 Collection of William Roach	Summer Lake Study Plate 3 Fig. 1.15 Silverpoint, salt, playa crust and graphite on wood panel 2015 Collection of William Roach
Desert Waterlines Silverleaf on panel 20"x20" Available for sale- contact for price	Desert Waterlines Silverleaf on panel 20"x 20" Available for sale- contact for price	Desert Waterlines Silverleaf on panel 20"x20" Available for sale- contact for price
Desert Waterlines Silverleaf on panel 20"x20" Available for sale- contact for price	Desert Waterlines Silverleaf on panel 20"x20" Available for sale- contact for price	Desert Waterlines Silverleaf on panel 20"x20" Available for sale- email for price
Desert Waterlines Silverleaf on panel 20"x20" Available for sale- contact for price	Desert Remnants found objects at Summer Lake, OR 4"x7" and 4"x4" glass cloche 2015	Desert Remnants found objects at Summer Lake, OR 4"x4" glass cloche 2015
Desert Remnants found objects at Summer Lake, OR 4"x7" glass cloche 2015	Playa Precipitation Summer Lake Annual Precipitation 2004-14 string and insect pins wall installation 12' x 4' 2015 Each line refers to one year of accumulative precipitation	Playa Precipitation Summer Lake Annual Precipitation 2004-14 string and insect pins wall installation 12' x 4' 2015 Each line refers to one year of accumulative precipitation
Playa Precipitation Summer Lake Annual Precipitation 2004-14 string and insect pins wall installation 12' x 4' 2015 Each line refers to one year of accumulative precipitation	Playa Precipitation Summer Lake Annual Precipitation 2004-14 string and insect pins wall installation 12' x 4' 2015 Each line refers to one year of accumulative precipitation

The series of work made during my time at PLAYA Artist Residency involves the visualization of hydrology and its relationship to the high desert climate at Summer Lake. PLAYA is nestled up against a ridge looking out onto the vast Summer Lake, a seasonal dry lake. This part of Oregon has been in a severe drought, this artwork explores the value of water as a precious resource to those who live in the high desert. Summer Lake Waterlines is an abstracted landscape painting that combines a graph of accumulative local precipitation of the last 10 years and the reflective qualities of the temporary lake. The geometric shapes that make up the graph are all in the color palette visible at Summer Lake this past January. The surface of the water changed almost daily and the waterlines along the edge of the lake were temporary. I used silver leaf in this painting to function as the highly reflective surface of the lake and also for its value as a resource. The lake was ephemeral, similar to my memory, it is fragmented from the daily changes in weather, precipitation and colors.

In his book, The Great Basin, Donald Grayson states that while the hydrology of the the closed basin is very interesting, “it is the plants and things that live in, on and around them that form the immediacy of the Great Basin when you are in it.” This poignantly describes the experience I had exploring Summer Lake, as I was particularly drawn to the relationship between the micro and macro. My practice relied on collecting plants and small objects that found near the playa and pairing them with the larger birds eye view of the landscape informed by topography maps. While I was there I also used a variety of precipitation data from Summer Lake over the past 10 years which influenced my artwork. Being that this part of Oregon is in a severe drought, this work explores the value of water and what a precious resource it is. The lake is shallow and temporary in the winter and changes depending on the winds and evaporation.

Images below were taken during my time at Playa of the landscape surrounding the Artist Residency in Summer Lake, OR. www.playasummerlake.org

Summer Lake stormy day		Playa crust cracking
Documenting Precipitation	morning fog	Frosty morning walk
Winter Ridge and Playa Residency My cabin was the second from the left.	Looking towards the south of Summer Lake and Winter Ridge	Thistles and Winter Ridge
Waterlines	frosty morning walk	waterlines
frozen bubbles on the playa	Dusk on the edge of the playa	Dusk on the edge of the playa
Horizon lines and stone lines		frozen lake between playa commons and Summer Lake
frozen air bubbles in the lake
desert plants	Dusk	Reflections in the lake