Logos for McInnis Canyons NCA

Final New Logo

I was recently commissioned to come up with some ideas for logos for McInnis Canyons National Conservation Area (NCA). Above is my final design. Below is another good option I presented to the NCA managers.

McInnis Canyons is a special place because of the variety of landscapes located there. It encompasses about 123,000 acres of wild land in western Colorado. There is an array of natural arches, a 20-mile stretch of the Colorado River, and remote canyons. Also in McInnis Canyons are caches of ancient dinosaur fossils, Native American rock art, and other cultural sites.

Another concept for the new logo

The old logo had several problems:
(1) It was too complex. It had too much detail to work well in a variety of applications.
(2) It didn’t reflect the character of the local land. Land managers felt that the old logo was more reflective of Arches National Park, using its iconic image of Delicate Arch, instead of representing the unique quality of the land specific to McInnis Canyons NCA.

The old McInnis Canyons logo

Concepts for New FIDM Catalog

I’m working on a new college catalog design for The Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising. The book is about 200 pages and includes just about everything you’d ever want to know about the college.

Cover 01

I’m planning to have 4-6 different covers for the catalog (depending on how many will fit up on a press sheet). The blue rectangle will be the same on each cover, but the background patterns will change. I like the idea of a mix-n-match/grab bag spontaneity of having a variety of different covers.

Cover 02

This is an example of what a spread inside the catalog might look like.

I Dreamt of Things...

Last night I dreamt of a big, beautiful, historic library. The library had a big bell tower with a winding staircase. There were stained-glass windows and multicolored light streamed into this lonely space.

In contrast to the quiet space of the bell tower, the library’s lobby was bustling with activity. There was a litter of six or eight puppies wearing big florescent-colored sombreros being cared for by six or eight little Mexican boys. The puppies were running around the library and the boys were chasing them.

Every time I tried to leave the library, a security guard would come and hold me down as I screamed, and someone would give me a tranquilizer shot. They would hold me down until I fell asleep.

Paintings to Inspire You

Laurie Riccadonna, Tree

I was looking at some galleries’ websites and came across these beautiful works by New Jersey artist Laurie Riccadonna. Her work focuses on the relationships between pattern and nature. She is influenced by Spanish and Moorish ceramic tile decoration. Visit her website to view more images of her work.

Laurie Riccadonna, Snowy Egrets

Speechless at Ice Lake

We were climbing the last steep pitch toward Ice Lake, after already being completely amazed by a meadow below, when we crossed paths with a family who was coming down from having already visited the lake. We stopped to chat with the father, who simply said, “It’s totally worth all the effort... mmmmmmaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!” He was right.

This is the bluest water I’ve ever seen in my entire life.

This is a difficult, if short, 6-mile (round trip) hike with almost 3,000 feet of elevation gain from bottom to top. When we got to the top, Matt and I spent an hour and a half enjoying our lunch of granola bars and dried mango, exploring the lake, the meadows, and the wildflowers. We even got screamed at by a couple of marmots who thought we were too close to their homes.

Wildflowers Beyond Belief

Matt and I spent a long weekend at South Mineral Creek campground near Silverton, Colorado. I can say without hesitation that this was the best possible place we could’ve chosen to spend our weekend. On Friday, we hiked the Ice Lake trail that leaves right from the campground. It’s six miles round trip, with almost 3,000 feet of gain from bottom to top... a difficult hike, but totally worth the effort.

I’m separating my account of this trip into two separate blog entries — that is how absolutely amazing this hike was. I’m starting with the wildflowers, which were out of control. I took over 400 photos today, if that tells you anything at all.

Colorado Columbine (Aquilegia caerulea)

It’s easy to see why the Colorado Columbine is the official state flower... It’s so big and delicate and gorgeous!

Cow Parsnip (Heracleum maximum)

I just love this Cow Parsnip, partly because of the name, but mostly because of the way it captures the light and forms a little umbrella for it's big floppy leaves down below.

Elephant’s Head (Pedicularis groenlandica)

I guess it’s pretty obvious why this plant is called “Elephant’s Head.” Each little flower looks like an elephants snout!

Honda Civic Hybrid = 54 mpg = WOW!

Matt was filling up the Civic Hybrid on Thursday for our camping trip when he pointed out that we drove 758 miles on one tank of gas! I love the Civic Hybrid! Suck it, everybody who still drives a gas guzzler!

Anna Zemánková’s Drawings

Anna Zemánková (1908-1986) was from what is now Czech Republic. She loved to draw as a child, but didn't begin her serious work until mid-life when her son gave her some art materials to help her combat depression. She found solace in art, and created floral and botanical drawings during hours of solitude. In the 1970s, Zemánková began to develop new techniques of working with the surface of the paper. She began to punch holes into it, and created raised textures in her work by manipulating the paper's surface. She also began working with collage techniques, incorporating textiles, beads, threads and other materials into the paper. (To find out more about Anna Zemánkovás life, go here.)

I find this work really inspiring... I love the imperfections in the line quality and shapes, the textures created, and the recognizable abstract quality of the work. I also like to use various materials in my own paintings, and love to explore multiple ways to manipulate the drawing/painting surface, creating 3-dimensional textures that interact with light and shadow.

Dominguez Canyon Weekend

A cliff at the top of Big Dominguez Canyon.

Matt and I went camping this weekend with a bunch of people from Colorado Environmental Coalition and Sierra Club. Dominguez Canyon and its surroundings are in the process of becoming a special protected area, called a National Conservation Area.

The weather was perfect this weekend. It rained a few times, but everything cleared up and dried out in time for us to hike six miles and enjoy a barbeque and campfire. Tom Wolf was a guest speaker, and he talked about a biography he recently completed about Arthur Carhart, one of the first advocates for protecting America's wild places. After we heard about Arthur Carhart and his dedication to protecting public lands for all Americans, we were gung-ho about helping to continue his legacy.

Mushroom in the campground.

Even though it has been a hot, dry desert summer, the rain over the last few days has caused everything to burst with life. I love the way the desert turns bright green after a big storm, and wildflowers and mushrooms pop out all over the place. The mushroom you see above was about six inches in diameter! Below is a great example of Indian Paintbrush. We also saw a fresh bear track in the trail yesterday while we were hiking... always exciting!

Here’s an article from the Montrose Daily Press about our outing.

Indian Paintbrush

Yoga Play Time

Urdhva Dhanurasana

Tess and I were goofing off tonight at her yoga studio after I taught a sweaty level 2 class. These are some of my favorite poses. I’m still working on Pinca Mayurasana (without the wall) and my Eka Pada Bakasana (without tipping over onto my face), so you’ll have to wait until I get those two under control before I show them to you.

Bakasana

Sirsasana

Eka Pada Koundiyasana I

Ideas over Utah Canyons

I was flying back to Colorado from Los Angeles a few weeks ago. The sky was crystal clear and I could see all the way down to Lake Powell and Monument Valley. I was struck by the organic shapes created by the deep canyon walls. Looking down on the canyons from a birds-eye perspective was so amazing. I also found it interesting that no matter how the canyons carved in and out in amorphic shapes, the dirt roads often continued to run parallel and perpendicular to one another. I’m looking forward to making something out of this quick sketch I did on the plane.

Hiking at Mack Ridge

Colorado River from Mack Ridge, McInnis Canyons NCA, western Colorado.

Matt and I went to Mack Ridge this weekend to scout out a volunteer trail work project he's planning for National Public Lands Day. Friends of McInnis Canyons, a non-profit group I manage, will be sending volunteers and is sponsoring a big BBQ at the end of the day. The trail work will add another 1/2 mile of mountain biking trail to create a loop for beginner to intermediate riders.

I was shocked to see, at the beginning of August in the middle of the desert, some tiny pink wildflowers all over the place! These flowers are less than 1/4 inch in diameter, so if you’re not looking, you could easily miss these beauties! I was surprised at how green everything was, considering the fact that it hasn’t rained in months, and it has been over 90° for more than 50 days straight (a record in this area).

Mango Salsa

I’ve been on a kick all summer making mango salsa... I tried to make some tonight, but all my mangoes were bad... I just bought them yesterday! I thought I’d share the recipe with you so perhaps you can make it with your own fresh mangoes. At least someone will be able to enjoy it!

Ingredients:

4 mangoes, chopped into 1/2 inch cubes

1 red bell pepper, finely chopped

1/3 bunch cilantro, chopped

1/3 small red onion, finely chopped

1 jalapeno, diced

1 tbsp cumin

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp sugar

1 tsp. lime juice

Mix it all together and enjoy!