Wild Ozark™

~ Nature Artist using Ozark pigments in Kingston, Arkansas ~

Tag: handmade watercolors

Paint Making Tools of the Trade

When I first started experimenting with handmade watercolors, I didn’t have any special tools. I had some ideas, a little bit of information, and a whole lot of curiosity. Along the way I discovered these things that have become my … Read the rest “Paint Making Tools of the Trade”

14 December 2025
Paint-making in Little Rock | Workshop

I’m excited to be holding a workshop at the Historic Arkansas Museum in Little Rock next month.

Living Craft Workshop in Little Rock

10 am to 3 pm
200 E. Third St., Little Rock, Arkansas, US
Phone: 1-501-324-9351 | Fax: … Read the rest “Paint-making in Little Rock | Workshop”

20 March 2024
Painting of a Farm | Progression Page

This painting of a farm, as seen from the front door of the farm house, was a commission for a real estate agent (my daughter) to give the seller. It was a difficult necessity that led the owner … Read the rest “Painting of a Farm | Progression Page”

10 August 2021
A Stable Blue from Asiatic Dayflower (Commelina communis)

One day I smashed a flower petal from the Asiatic dayflower between my thumb and forefinger. It’s a small plant that grows sparsely in the shady, moist areas along the driveway. While it’s not native to the Ozarks, it is … Read the rest “A Stable Blue from Asiatic Dayflower (Commelina communis)”

4 September 2020
Presenting … A Rainbow of Ozark Pigments

Skip right to the discussion for your workshop: email me at madison@wildozark.com. I’ll bring my stash of Ozark pigments and rocks, or we can go foraging on site at your location. Plus, I’ll bring all the materials needed to make … Read the rest “Presenting … A Rainbow of Ozark Pigments”

17 January 2020
Blood of the Ozarks- a new Paleo Paints Driftwood Palette

There is one precious source for a certain color I don’t use often or in large quantities. My new Driftwood Palette collection I’m calling ‘Blood of the Ozarks’ contains some paints with some of this color.

Unadulterated with other pigments, … Read the rest “Blood of the Ozarks- a new Paleo Paints Driftwood Palette”

13 October 2019
Paint-making Tips and Tools: Tiny Jars

As I reordered some supplies the other day, I thought it would make interesting blog posts to show you some of my favorite tools and paint-making hacks as I run across them. This one is tiny jars. I love these … Read the rest “Paint-making Tips and Tools: Tiny Jars”

2 July 2019
Shades of Shale

Black shale is a common rock in our creeks and streams. The rocks are brittle and easy to crumble, and make a dark gray rub. A great candidate for making some paint.

And it makes a really buttery textured paint. … Read the rest “Shades of Shale”

26 June 2019
Stacked Rocks Still Life Painting- the Process

The Process Story of “Ozark Rocks and Leaf”

This painting started out plein air. The grandkids were visiting and wanted to go splash around at Felkins creek. While they played, I began painting these stacked rocks with a sycamore leaf.… Read the rest “Stacked Rocks Still Life Painting- the Process”

23 June 2019
Pottery Shard

A few weeks ago during my morning walk, I found an old pottery shard. So I put it in my pocket and finished my walk. It looked like it might make a nice paint, but I debated over whether or … Read the rest “Pottery Shard”

20 June 2019
Ozark Birds of Prey : Red-shouldered Hawk

Just finished this red-shouldered hawk (Buteo lineatus).

The original is SOLD. Prints are available.

Progression Pics: Art in Progress

I post all of the steps as I’m doing it at Instagram, so if you want to follow … Read the rest “Ozark Birds of Prey : Red-shouldered Hawk”

16 April 2019
Wild Waterfall Shale

Making paint from waterfall slate

Slate isn’t the easiest rock to grind up. The first time I made paint, I gathered a few rocks from here and there to see what I would get. This rock lives near the waterfall … Read the rest “Wild Waterfall Shale”

16 April 2019
A Paint-Making Experiment with Murdoch’s Mystery Rock

A thoughtful person by the last name of Murdoch, who happens also to know a bit of geology, enjoyed my display over at Kingston Square Arts, bought a print, and then came back and left me a box of rocks. … Read the rest “A Paint-Making Experiment with Murdoch’s Mystery Rock”

2 April 2019
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 … Read the rest “Handmade, Wild-crafted Paleo Paints Mini Cubes”

22 March 2019
Pink Tequila

Pink Tequila comes from a pink sandstone, but the resulting paint or pigment color isn’t pink at all. Or at least, not very much. It’s closer to orange, but there is a slight pink tinge to the orange.

This one, … Read the rest “Pink Tequila”

21 March 2019
“I make paint from rocks…” A typical encounter.

Click HERE to go directly to my online gallery. All of the work you’ll see there uses paint made from rocks.

Click HERE if you want to see Paleo Paints at Etsy. And HERE for workshops on making them.

Talking
… Read the rest ““I make paint from rocks…” A typical encounter.”

16 January 2019
My Interview with Jacqueline Froelich of KUAF (91.3 FM)

I was excited to have been interviewed by Jacqueline Froelich of KUAF earlier this week. She came out on Tuesday and let me show and tell my process of making paint and art from the natural resources of the land … Read the rest “My Interview with Jacqueline Froelich of KUAF (91.3 FM)”

11 January 2019
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 … Read the rest “Winter Solstice 2018, New Year, and the Color Black”

19 December 2018
Black. The Messiest Color Start to Finish.

Sometimes I’m overzealous with the black. More honestly put, I am almost always too generous with the black. I put more on than I need and so end up taking a lot of it right back off.

Why I love
… Read the rest “Black. The Messiest Color Start to Finish.”

19 December 2018
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). … Read the rest “Catching Up & Gearing Up for More Paint-Making and Paintings”

18 November 2018
Plant Pigments – Experimenting and Searching for Green

Generally I don’t use the plant pigments because they’re fugitive, meaning they fade over time. Sometimes they completely disappear.

However, I’ve found two sources that actually intensify with exposure to light (full sunshine) and so I am experimenting with extracting … Read the rest “Plant Pigments – Experimenting and Searching for Green”

15 October 2018
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 … Read the rest “Making Paint from Pink Sandstone of the Ozarks”

21 September 2018
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 … Read the rest “Brown Earth Pigment for my Handmade Watercolor Palette”

28 August 2018
The Painting of a Pelican

Pelican No. 1

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 … Read the rest “The Painting of a Pelican”

24 August 2018
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 … Read the rest “A Call for Rocks and a New Page”

20 August 2018