Wild Ozark™

~ Nature Artist in Kingston, Arkansas ~ Sharing my experience with Nature through art & writing about my life in the Ozarks

Wild Ozark: Where Madison Woods paints with Ozark pigments … and talks to rocks, creeks, and trees.

Blog

SOUL OF THE OZARKS | The 4th Painting

After the second kestrel, which was the third painting, I thought I’d try another kestrel. I had another good photo to work from and I’d come to really love the colors and form of kestrels. By this time I was … Read the rest “SOUL OF THE OZARKS | The 4th Painting”

14 February 2021
Cow Portrait | Whisper, the Brahman cow | Painting Process

The first painting of 2021 is also the first of its size, and the first using a single source for pigment. But it is my second Brahman cow portrait. ‘Brahman Baby‘ was the first. This is my progress … Read the rest “Cow Portrait | Whisper, the Brahman cow | Painting Process”

20 January 2021
New Win: Wild & Scenic Film Festival

Virtual Art Show

I’m thrilled to report that A Curious Pair and Destination Unknown were accepted to the virtual art show of the Wild & Scenic Film Festival.

Update 1/15/21: A huge THANK YOU to Consuelo (Chelo) Montoya for … Read the rest “New Win: Wild & Scenic Film Festival”

15 January 2021
A Rock Crusher Machine for Making Pigments

Until now, the rock crushing machine was me and a mortar and pestle.

But now, whoo boy, things are about to get serious. Rob ordered a prospector’s rock crusher while he was still working overseas. It has been patiently waiting … Read the rest “A Rock Crusher Machine for Making Pigments”

15 January 2021
My 2021 Outlook | A Loosely Defined Path

This is probably the first year that I didn’t go through a reflection of the previous year while making plans for the coming year. In some ways right now, it feels like it doesn’t really matter anyway. No matter how … Read the rest “My 2021 Outlook | A Loosely Defined Path”

4 January 2021
Natural Ozark Beauty on the To-Paint List

It snowed over the weekend for the first time this season. This always leads to me taking a lot of photos of our natural Ozark beauty, most of them not shared because they’re just too repetitive. But I can’t help … Read the rest “Natural Ozark Beauty on the To-Paint List”

15 December 2020
SOUL OF THE OZARKS | The 3rd Painting

Still in July 2018, and still in Qatar visiting Rob, I decided to try a 3rd painting. I’d do another kestrel and see if I could do it better this time. Because it was so hot outside during daylight hours, … Read the rest “SOUL OF THE OZARKS | The 3rd Painting”

6 December 2020
Thanksgiving 2020

May your day be filled with abundance and gratitude. I have a lot to be thankful for, and the love and health of family is at the top of my list. I have a husband who is my anchor, best … Read the rest “Thanksgiving 2020”

26 November 2020
Book Review | Tree Beings

Tree Beings, by Raymond Huber and Sandra Severgnini
Forward by Dr. Jane Goodall
Exisle Publishing

This book is a review copy from the publisher. I chose this book to review because of the title. Right away, I identified with the … Read the rest “Book Review | Tree Beings”

24 November 2020
SOUL OF THE OZARKS | The Second Painting

Honestly, while I was delighted that my handmade watercolors worked alright for my first try, I wasn’t real pleased with the painting itself. So I decided to try a second painting.

This is the story of my journey into the … Read the rest “SOUL OF THE OZARKS | The Second Painting”

21 November 2020
SOUL OF THE OZARKS | Part 1 | The First Painting

This is the story of my journey into the world of being a watercolor painter. My angle on this is a bit different than most other artists I know, in that all of my paints are made from pigments I’ve … Read the rest “SOUL OF THE OZARKS | Part 1 | The First Painting”

19 November 2020
The Art That I Love Isn’t Necessarily The Art That I Paint

If find it a little strange that the type of art that I love isn’t necessarily the kind of art that I paint. Mainly that’s because what I love in art are the scenes that no longer exist in our … Read the rest “The Art That I Love Isn’t Necessarily The Art That I Paint”

1 November 2020
Artist Statement | Welcome to Wild Ozark

Thank you for dropping by my website. I hope you enjoy your stay! Are you an artist, or patron, nature-lover? Maybe an old friend, or lucky happenstance lander-on-the page? Today I’ve been updating some parts of my site. One of … Read the rest “Artist Statement | Welcome to Wild Ozark”

19 October 2020
Trying out the blue with a test painting

You may remember my flutter of initial excitement about the possibility of adding a stable blue to my palette. Yesterday I finally tried it in a quick painting in my journal. It worked! It’s so exciting to have this color … Read the rest “Trying out the blue with a test painting”

19 October 2020
New Acceptance: Las Laguna Art Gallery | 2020 Portrait Exhibition

I woke up this morning to an email announcing that one of my paintings had been accepted to a show. It’s good there are portrait exhibitions that allow strange paintings to hop on board. It’s no secret that I am … Read the rest “New Acceptance: Las Laguna Art Gallery | 2020 Portrait Exhibition”

17 October 2020
Book Review | Celebrating Australia’s Magnificent Wildlife

Note: I was provided a free copy of this book (Celebrating Australia’s Magnificent Wildlife) so I could write an honest review.

The Art of Daryl Dickson

This is a beautiful book. From the cover jacket to every page inside, … Read the rest “Book Review | Celebrating Australia’s Magnificent Wildlife”

16 October 2020
New Acceptance – 78th Annual Audubon Artists Exhibit

I’m pretty excited to announce that ‘Destination Unknown’ was accepted to the the 2020 Audubon Artists Exhibit. UPDATE 11/6/20: I’m even more excited to say that my painting won the Silver Medal and a cash award of $300 for the … Read the rest “New Acceptance – 78th Annual Audubon Artists Exhibit”

3 October 2020
How To Identify Pigment Rocks?

There are many different sources for I can use for pigments, including plants, clay, soil, bones, and rocks. Most of the plants aren’t lightfast, so I don’t use many of those, but the main source for my Paleo Paints is … Read the rest “How To Identify Pigment Rocks?”

2 October 2020
Painting a Raccoon in Ozark Pigments on Black Paper

I’m working on painting a raccoon on black paper. It’s the first time I’ve painted on black, and the experience is very different from anything else I’ve tried to paint. As I was deciding which paper to put it on, … Read the rest “Painting a Raccoon in Ozark Pigments on Black Paper”

30 September 2020
Get Closer to Nature: 5 Quick and Easy Ways

There are so many quick and easy ways to get closer to nature that no one needs to go without the benefits of having that connection to our natural world.

Click here for a more in-depth page on building a … Read the rest “Get Closer to Nature: 5 Quick and Easy Ways”

20 September 2020
Nature Journal | Still the Mind to See and Hear

Summary: Still the mind to see and hear things you ordinarily wouldn’t notice. My walking meditation helps settle the audio-visual chatter.

9/17/20 Thursday | Today I stopped at the creek to gather a few rocks. Before that I’d spent the … Read the rest “Nature Journal | Still the Mind to See and Hear”

18 September 2020
How Such Earthy Colors End Up In My Art

It’s hard not to want to spend all my time making art with earthy colors, especially when I see super pigmented resources like this all around me every day. Just look at this rock.

Super pigmented rocks are perfect for
… Read the rest “How Such Earthy Colors End Up In My Art”

14 September 2020
A Color Story | Earth Pigments | From Rocks to Paint

When I want a certain color of paint, I’ll go to the creek to look for the rocks I’ll need. In this case, the color is a rich russet – brown with orange influence. What is the color story behind … Read the rest “A Color Story | Earth Pigments | From Rocks to Paint”

7 September 2020
Chasing the Blue Pigment

I had almost resigned myself to never having an Ozark source for a stable blue pigment. I’d tried various flowers around here, like chicory, and hoped the blue porcelain berry skins would have given me blue. None of the rocks … Read the rest “Chasing the Blue Pigment”

6 September 2020
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