Ecological Reflections Artist: Rebecca Gazarik

By Rebecca Gazarik

When I visited Wing Haven, I knew immediately I wanted to make a statement about the water. I spent time during the year sitting on the little dock overlooking the kettle lake. I used all my senses to gather inspiration; I heard migrating waterfowl passing through, I felt the gentle swaying of the dock as the wind blew the water in small ripples, and I ate my packed lunch surrounded by mosquitoes on a particularly humid day after a rainstorm.

On one of my summer visits, I took notice of small damselflies that seemed to have chosen lily pads as their personal territories. I enjoyed watching them dance and dart around. This drew my attention to the lily pads themselves, which were growing in various sizes, shapes and colors. I always thought lily pads were a simple shade of green, but here at Wing Haven, I saw hues of pink and purple, too.

This was the inspiration for the final piece, which features a slightly abstract scene of the American Water Lily showcasing its vibrant colors. The painting was created using gouache on a dark-coated clay board. This is my signature style of painting, which creates vibrant, rich colors. While I usually paint landscapes, this piece was done with intention of shape and color interactions and reflects a two-dimensional scene. I logged about 27 hours of painting, with an additional five hours of scanning, framing and creating a digital version that could be used as an iron-on patch for promotion. There was an unexpected issue of flaking while painting, which I tried to resolve, but was not able to completely solve. However, there is beauty in imperfections, and I believe this adds character to the painting. I sincerely hope this artwork inspires you to go outside and find wonders in nature.