I have some good friends who bring home barn wood for me and this was one of the pieces. I love when there is a knot at the top left or right corner to symbolize the sun or the moon. This painting is about a Native American life in Montana. I started dreaming of Native Americans almost ten years ago and feel very connected to them. We have native american lineage from my grandmas dad's side. My grandmother looked very native american.
This is an ode to a life connected to nature and mother earth. Its something I admire, especially when i'm starting to feel the pull to retreat into the forest for awhile and just 'get away.' We have an amazingly big oak tree in our back yard I go to when I need grounding, or I'll look at this painting and feel myself being very grounded. I like to paint a fire with smoke because it symbolizes life. There has to be someone there even though you can't see them. The smoke goes right up over the trees and mountain to the sky and connects heaven and earth. I feel at any moment Pocahontas will emerge from her Tipi and tend to the fire.