"The sky in this piece was painted before any other part of the painting. It was inspired by the blues, pinks, and purples that dominate the sky at dusk. I thought I would paint a beach scene, but after researching some locations, I realized the remaining part of the painting needed to be a lakeside. I attempted to use pigments, micas, pastels, and paints made/sourced entirely in North America, but lost out on that ability on a couple of the mica and pastel colors. This painting took months to make, because I would glaze a layer and set it up after drying to reassess what colors I wanted to put on it. Finally, after looking all over for a deep purple pigment from North America to add into the water, I found one made in the US! Yey! Every time I had tried mixing raw pigments, I had to come up with for the purple streaks in the lake, I would wash it off and start again. Finally, after getting a burgundy purple, I was able to finish this painting! Part of me still wanted to work on it further, but after 1 more wash of pigment and tweaking the sky, I found that I liked the way it came together. It was finally completed after Christmas, 2018. This piece reminds me of a vacation day by the lake, but also represents the hard work that goes into earning a day off."
- Suzanne Hellums

Prints are produced on demand on either acrylic plexi, mounted canvas, or giclee fine art paper in a variety of sizes here in the United States. High quality print reproductions for your home or office designed by artists living with homelessness or disabilities.