Life Cartography
Life Cartography is a new series of work in watercolor and ink dedicated to the paths we take in life, both literal and figurative, inspired by my personal journey as an artist and highlights of adventures throughout the Southeast. I was gifted a sketchbook from my older brother Stephen (equal parts role-model sibling and sparring partner) during the summer of 2023 and began crafting a fresh language of drawings removed from how things are “supposed to look” instead leaning into a stylized way of interpreting the world around me.
These images grew from doodles, a visual journal of family moments and travel impressions initially called Road Sketches: a graphic retelling mixed with innocence and nostalgia, mindset and setting, nestled in the calm bird-song embrace of nature or imbued with the frenetic energy of an urban escapade.
The locations depicted are less landscapes and more collage, they range from the Gulf-coast of Florida to the misty mountains of Appalachia, windy roads of East Tennessee and Western North Carolina, down to the low-country wetlands of coastal South Carolina and Georgia. Inspired by the honeymoon road trip Faith and I took last July, staying in a mix of rustic cabins, lofty tree-houses and charming cottages, new drawings flowed forth recounting more about the arc of our journey than any one destination.
My hope is that you find wonderment and joy viewing these images as I have had crafting them from the depths of my heart to share with you, dear viewer. Future goals: create a coloring book from this series of ink drawings archived before painting them, so others can enjoy the innocence and experimentation that comes from coloring inside or outside the lines of life.