Working with just water and a few dried blocks of color is a liberating experience. I can bring a small notebook of watercolor paper and my other supplies, hike just about anywhere in the world, sit down and paint. Wherever I go, I aspire to capture simple, evocative portraits of the landscapes that inspire me.
I have spent the vast majority every summer since high school hiking and painting in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California. I have also guided there for the past six seasons.
The John Muir Trail runs 211 miles through the Sierra from Yosemite Valley to the top of Mount Whitney. Here are just a few glimpses of the scenery along the trail.
Original: SOLD
8 x 10 inches, watercolor on hot press paper
Winding through LeConte Canyon, the sunlit grasses of and perfect views from the openings of the meadows often call me to step off the trail and find moments of solitude and warmth.
5.5 x 8.5 inches
Original: SOLD
Prints still available.
Crossing the creek at Upper Basin, with Cardinal and Split Peaks due east, the Mule Skinner and his train of mules head south towards the South Fork of the Kings River.
Original: Sold
3.5 x 8 inches, hot press watercolor paper
Racing the storm at Muir pass, the Goddard range looms on the horizon.
Original: available
8 x 10 inches
Towards the end of the trail, moving ever closer to Mount Whitney ( background, on the left), I have to stop at this spot along the trail every time. Turning back you can see how far you've come from Forester Pass and how much closer you are to reaching Mount Whitney. This plateau is dotted with foxtail pines and late in the season dry grasses that really are as bright as the colors in the painting. It is a magical place.
Original: unavailable
6 x 19 inches, prints available
Mount Ritter, with an approaching storm and the last light of late afternoon, this painting was done en plein air on one of my guided trips of the John Muir Trail, in 2012.
8.5 x 5.5 inches
Watercolor on cold press paper
View of Mount Banner looking southwest from the trail towards Island Pass.
Original: Sold
Available as 5 x 7 inch greeting cards in the shop
Original: available
8.5 x 5.5 inches
The second waterfall you might encounter along the John Muir Trail, Nevada Fall cascades 594 feet before rejoining the Merced river. It is one of the most breath-taking waterfalls in Yosemite National Park and can be enjoyed either from the trail below Liberty Cap or the Panorama Trail/JMT.
My earliest memories of life outside the city are from annual family vacations to Yosemite Valley. There I learned to fish, swim and hike in the mountains, and it was my first experience of myself, outside.
Painting and walking have become spiritual practices for me, allowing me to connect with the spaces around me. These paintings are one way I hope to share these experiences with others.
3.5 x 5 inches
Watercolor on hot press paper
Original: unavailable
Prints: limited edition prints available here
8 x 10 inches
Watercolor on cold press paper
As seen from mid-way up the Yosemite Falls trail. Lost Arrow Spire looms in the upper right corner.
20 x 16 inches
Original Watercolor on Arches watercolor board, 1/8 inch thick
Reimagined colors and sizing from the first in this series, the falls casts rich purple shadows and looks as if it could be on fire.
Done with a combination of traditional watercolor and pure pigment dyes brought home from my travels in Peru in 2009, this piece moves within its layers of color.
8.5 x 5.5 inches
Watercolor on cold press paper
View of the falls from the trail above Vernal Fall.
Verdant and open, the terrain is full of mystery and surprise. Huckleberries and morels appear where you might least expect it, or exactly where you would, depending on your knowledge of the hills. Look up, however, this place calls me to look up, look over and over again to the sky.
5.5 x 8.5 inches
Watercolor on cold press paper
Painted on site in my Uncle's woodworking shop in Ola, Idaho.
5.5 x 8.5 inches
Watercolor on cold press paper
Impression of the hills in Ola, Idaho as the the clouds gather.
5.5 x 8.5 inches
Watercolor on cold press paper
"The City" here refers to City of Rocks, Idaho, where I have discovered one of my favorite places to hike and go rock-climbing, thanks to my husband.
5.5 x 8.5 inches
Watercolor on cold press paper
A watercolor wash followed by pen and ink for detail in the hills and the sky. Another scene from the City of Rocks, ID.
Although I spent almost two weeks traveling in the country, I only stopped to take out my paints once, here, when my mom and I toured Halong Bay, with its cliffs and caves. What a mystical place, with blood orange sunset skies and indescribably deep blue waters!
4 x 6 inches
Watercolor on cold press paper
Painted on a boat on Halong Bay in July 2008
4 x 6 inches
Watercolor on cold press paper
Painted on a boat on Halong Bay, Vietnam in July 2008
In recent years I have found a home in the high desert of California. I live in Joshua Tree during the fall, winter and spring seasons, returning to the Sierra during the summers.
The Joshua Tree has a personality all its own, and the town and national park are home to some of the most incredible people I have ever met. This place is full of wonders, especially if you're up early enough to see the sunrise or out on the rocks watching the sunset.
5.5 x 8.5 inches
Watercolor on cold press paper
View from the top of Lost Horse Wall in Joshua Tree National Park, looking southwest towards Key's View.
Jimmy Cliff is the shark's fin.
This painting is already custom framed and ready to hang on your wall. If interested, check out the listing here.
5.5 x 8.5 inches
Watercolor on cold press paper
Original: SOLD
Based on a photograph collage by Jenny Kane
4 x 6 inches
Watercolor on hot press paper
Painted from the view on top of Ryan Mountain in Joshua Tree national park, looking northwest towards San Gorgonio mountain.
Let the warmth of the sun fill you as the wind whips across your face and chills your fingers as you try to capture the last moments of the light.
16 x 20 inches
Watercolor on Arches watercolor board.
On the trail to Chuparosa Peak, this view is looking east towards Pioneertown and Pipes Canyon Preserve. There was a fire there in 2005, and now you can begin to see the area regenerating. Baby Joshua Trees and Yuccas are spouting at the base of their charred parents. The landscape is renewing itself.
On loan and on display at the dentist office of Linda and Kevin McNally.
For more information about purchashing this piece, please contact the artist at: jk@jennykaneart.com
8 x 10 inches
Watercolor on cold press paper
Image is based on an original photograph by Naomi Chakrin
Painting will be shown as part of the newest series - Sun Rise/Set in October for the HWY 62 Art Tours.
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