Category Archives: Nature

Ozark Birds of Prey : Red-shouldered Hawk

The painting I’m working on now is a red-shouldered hawk (Buteo lineatus). When I’m done, I’ll update this post. If I get a chance, I may also add more progress photos as I work on it. Most of the time, when I’m working on a painting, I post all of the steps as I’m doing […]

Handmade, Wild-crafted Paleo Paints Mini Cubes

Paleo Paints Mini’s are mini cubes of watercolor paints using Ozark pigments. Each one is approximately 3/8 inch cubes. They’re wild-crafted and handmade. Smaller than a standard half-pan but far larger than a sample dot, these are perfect for creating watercolor travel sets. The Colors Whole Yellow Pink Heavies Gray-green heavies Char Shale Russet fines […]

My Artist’s Business Plan for Wild Ozark 2019

So, this isn’t a ‘formal’ business plan, but more of an outline of my goals, plans, and strategy for the year regarding my art. To see the outline of intended subjects for the paintings, take a look at my Ozark Birds of Prey page. It’ll give you an idea of the focus and scope of […]

Goshawk no. 2 – The Creation of “Rhapsody”

I’m working on the second painting in my series of northern goshawks. Click through to read about what I’ve done differently on this one as compared to the others.

“I make paint from rocks…” A typical day at the market.

It’s a typical day at the market (for someone who makes paint from rocks). I’m most easily found during winter on Saturday’s at the Fayetteville Farmer’s Market. To see what other venues I’ll be at this year, check out my online calendar. And Wild Ozark is always ‘open for business’ at our Etsy shop. At […]

My Interview with Jacqueline Froelich of KUAF (91.3 FM)

Jacqueline Froelich of KUAF came out to Wild Ozark to interview me about the Paleo Paints. Here’s the link so you can listen 🙂

Goshawk No. 1, Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis)

I’ve always been fascinated with birds of prey and the sport of falconry. One of the birds commonly trained for hunting is the Northern Goshawk. Here’s my rendition of a beautiful wild goshawk photographed by Nicoli Gianluca. Goshawk No. 1 Right now the image is at the art shop getting scanned because it’s too large […]

New Products Lineup for Wild Ozark 2019

Lots of new Paleo Paint products in the lineup for Wild Ozark 2019! Look for new handmade watercolors, new packaging (less plastic!) and more paintings. Since I started making the paint in June of last year, I’ve experimented a lot. And I’ve learned a lot. The same goes for the paintings using handmade watercolors. As […]

Winter Solstice 2018, New Year, and the Color Black

Full Moon and Meteor Shower at Winter Solstice 2018 Winter solstice 2018 in Northern Hemisphere will be at 4:23 PM on Friday, December 21. This is the longest night of the year, and although I typically think of it as a dark night, it won’t be this year. With a full moon and meteor shower going […]

An End of Year Post: Things going on at Wild Ozark

It’s been a busy past few months at Wild Ozark. I haven’t posted as often as I normally do, and when the blog goes silent, it’s usually because there’s just too many other things on my plate. Just in case I don’t get a chance to make another post to commemorate the end of the […]

Give Less, Give More – a Popup Show at the Johnson Mill

That’s the name of a sweet little venue that is popping up this weekend over at the Johnson Mill in Johnson, AR (between Springdale and Fayetteville.) Give Less, Give More is hosted by Good Acres Life, a local company owned by Mariette Spedale. Pick up some Paleo Paints or Paintings I’ll be there with my […]

Catching Up & Gearing Up for More Paint-Making and Paintings

For the past couple of months I’ve been busy with festival-going and getting ready for more festival-going for the Burnt Kettle Syrup. Then for the past couple of weeks, I’ve been enjoying time with Rob (Mr. Wild Ozark/Burnt Kettle). Paint-making and painting has been on the sidelines for a while. But it’s time to get […]

2018 Autumn at Wild Ozark

It’s been several years since we’ve had the splendid colors we’re having this year. Today I went out to take some pictures to share of the 2018 Autumn at Wild Ozark. Some of the photos are from our driveway, some are down the road we take to get here. In the first photo below, it’s […]

Plant Pigments- in search of a stable green, the latest painting and the next show

Between getting the house clean today, since it’s raining and I couldn’t be outside weed-eating, I’ve been making a mess in the kitchen. People have to not take things at face value in this house. What looks like refreshing tea… just might not be. My kids know by now that not everything they see in […]

Making Paint from Pink Sandstone of the Ozarks

I’ve been busy as a bee lately making more and more paint. Even though this week my intention was to focus solely on getting ready for upcoming shows and festivals, the lure of a large chunk of pink sandstone seduced me. I couldn’t help it, and I gave in to make more paint. Collection No. […]

Brown Earth Pigment for my Handmade Watercolor Palette

My son found a rock alongside the driveway, near the creek. He kept it to give me since he knows I’ve been smashing a lot of rocks lately. This one seemed like it would be a great rock to make some of my earth pigments and handmade watercolors. It was mostly black, with some brown. […]

The Painting of a Pelican

This painting of a Louisiana Brown Pelican was based mostly on a photo by Shelby Townsend , but I liked the feet on another from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, so modified them to drape over the edge of the post. Here’s Shelby’s story about the day he took the photo. I remember taking that shot. […]

A Call for Rocks and a New Page

Saturday I went down to Felkins creek which is near the end of our driveway. It’s not that I needed more rocks. I just wanted to see what the recent rains might have turned up. So I should probably have not gone looking.   I only needed one rock. Or one color of rock. And […]

Soul of the Ozarks

I’m sure you’ve noticed I’ve been making paint lately, ha. But I thought I’d try out the slideshow-making program that came with my computer. Here’s a short collection to celebrate my first release of colors called Soul of the Ozarks. It’ll hit the shelves at the Kingston Square Arts shop on Sunday, Sept. 16. Locally […]

I am Going to Call it ‘Nirvana’

When I made my very first pan of watercolor paint, it was a russet from one of the sandstones on the ground outside. The color was nice, but at the bottom of that pan there was a very thin layer of a much deeper shade. I coveted the tiny bit of that and used it […]

How to Make Handmade Watercolor Paint from Rocks, Clay or Soil

Today I’m making handmade watercolor paint from some of our native clay. The technique I used is the same as I would have used for the other colors that come from rocks. This is a very basic way to make paint. It can get a lot more complicated, but definitely not necessary. If you fall […]

Making Media for Handmade Watercolors

Here’s the process I use for making media for my handmade watercolor paints. There are likely more precise ways to do this, but it’s the method I use that works for me. To see paintings I’ve done using my handmade watercolors, visit my online gallery at PaleoPaints.com. Any derivative artworks (prints, stationary, etc. can be […]

The “Panic Stage” in a Work of Nature Art

There’s a new work in progress sitting on my easel. By the time I’m done with this post, it’ll probably be a finished work. It’s another kestrel, and I’ve reached a reliable stage in the process. I call it the ‘Panic Stage’. My Process The photo above, by Terry Stanfill, is the one that served […]

Clearing the Clutter: Promises, Broken Rocks, and Things to Come

Such promise in a broken rock… I see paints everywhere now. Makes it hard to walk down the driveway. As if that wasn’t already hard enough before I learned about making earth pigments! The path in my office/studio AND the website has gotten hard to navigate too, so it’s time to do some work clearing […]