Celebrating 10 Years of Between the Evergreens!

Wow! I can’t believe it has been TEN YEARS since I started my business.

In 2016, I decided to give myself a chance to be a full-time artist. After getting a Masters in Professional Counseling, working as a Behavioral therapist, and at a university with students in recovery from addiction, I felt it was time to listen to a growing desire within me to be an artist. It was something that had been a passion of mine since I was very young, but I didn’t think it would be my career.

I left my job and used small part-time jobs to make ends meet as I was getting started. Now I spend my days in the studio painting for art shows, custom work, murals, and online sales of reproductions and originals (with a few other random things like calendars in there as well).

This year has been an interesting one so far with some unexpected challenges, beautiful new adventures, and exciting new shows. Some days I feel like a pro and other days I feel like I am beginning all over again. Two feelings I think are necessary to learning and growing.

It all started with trees

Before I started my business, I was inspired to start painting trees. On a road trip to the Pacific Northwest I was in awe of the Redwoods and Douglas Firs that towered over the coastal beaches. When I returned home to Atlanta, I started volunteering with Trees Atlanta and took some of their educational courses to learn more about these gracious beauties.

In celebration of my 10 year anniversary, I have created 10 paintings to honor how it all began. Each painting represents a different year and aspect of my growth as an artist and owner of Between the Evergreens.

 

YEAR ONE

ARTWORK: "Just Beyond"

Before I painted landscapes, I was inspired to paint trees. My love of trees and desire to pain them grew from a trip to the Pacific Northwest where I camped with friends under the giant Redwood trees. I remember the smell of the cool wet air and and how it felt to feel so small in such a wonderful, protected way.

When I returned home, I volunteered and took classes at a local organization to learn more about the natural world around me. Drawing/painting something is such a great way to learn more about it.

My painting, “Just Beyond” is inspired by the Oregon coast and named for the feeling I had when I was just starting out - that what I was seeking was just beyond the path in front of me.

YEAR TWO

ARTWORK: "Cloudland Waterfall"

In the beginning, everything felt like a wonder. After leaving a job where I worked regular hours inside all day, I had to find my pattern for work and life. It felt like I was looking at the world with new eyes. I could do what I wanted to do. Even my business was something I was excited to mold into what I envisioned it to be.

And just a few years after starting my business, COVID made staying at home less of a choice. To combat cabin fever, a friend and I started getting out to hike. We met weekly in a different spot, sometimes doing local urban hikes but more often getting out and driving to North Georgia for mountain hikes along mountain ridges, rivers, and waterfalls.

Cloudland canyon, which is the near the Georgia/Tennessee state line is a favorite spot for hiking, waterfalls, winter ice, and spring flowers. A rushing waterfall feels to me symbolic of abundance. And I especially felt that joyous abundance of ideas and creativity within me.

I hope to always remember to see things with new eyes and to not overlook the wonder of it all.

YEAR THREE

ARTWORK: "Rest Ahead"

The best kind of rest comes at the end of an uphill climb. It is (sometimes) helpful to see ahead to where you will be able to take a break and rest along your journey. A place of rest along the way allows a moment to be still and soak in what you have accomplished.

There are many moments in my ten years in business where I have felt that uphill climb. And while I can’t say that I’ve always taken advantage of the time to stop and appreciate where I’ve come, I can say this year I am trying to do exactly that. There isn’t just one plateau - like hiking, there are many ups and downs. But there is the reward of perseverance, and that is a very good feeling.

YEAR FOUR

ARTWORK: "Grandfather Mountain"

This may have been the most difficult hike I’ve done. Grandfather Mountain in western North Carolina is known for being a technical hike with ladders and cables to assist in climbing steep rocks and near vertical slopes. I went alone and early before the crowd, so I wouldn’t feel rushed or embarrassed if I looked silly talking to myself during a scary part of the hike (e.g. “this is a solid rock, and I’m not going to fall”). And after all those scary moments, I had completed the hike and felt truly on top of the world.

I’m sure my approach to this hike must say something about how I approach some of life’s challenges. I would rather have a learning period be private so I can present a better version of myself in public. More importantly, what I accomplished on the hike is a good reminder of what I am capable of accomplishing in life.

YEAR FIVE

ARTWORK: "Path Into the Canyon"

Inspired by a hike in Bryce Canyon, this view reminds me of what it’s like to trust the path ahead even when you can’t see the whole way down. Even when the start is beautiful, there is some fear not knowing what is next. You don’t know how long the trail is, what you will have to do to finish it (or if you will be able to), and what obstacles you may encounter along the way. Sometimes you just have to trust that you are on the right path and keep putting one food in front of the other. Along the way, keep your eyes and your heart open for the beauty you will find.

YEAR SIX

ARTWORK: "Light and Shadows"

Winter is one of my most favorite times of the year, but also one of the hardest. I love the rest it provides and the time it allows for reflection and recovery from moving through life so quickly. But time to reflect this way, also brings lots of time to face things you may have been avoiding. As difficult as this is, I find it important to reflect in order to move forward.

After a good winter’s rest, I feel the most delight in spring. Regardless of the temperature outside, seasons in life bring a change in what surrounds you and that can lead to a challenge and opportunity for new perspective.

YEAR SEVEN

ARTWORK: "Aspen in the Sun"

I took many photos in Bryce Canyon National Park but one of my favorites was one of an Aspen tree in the sun with gray clouds in the sky behind it.

I loved the Aspens for their patterned skin and leaves that clap softly in the wind. And this one seemed to have a spotlight on it as it stood tall at the mouth of a canyon.

It reminds me of how it feels to reach the top of a mountain and then stop to take in the view. All the struggle of climbing up is behind you and your bask in the sun and breeze on the mountain’s peak.

Hiking has been such a good life lesson for me personally. I always find it teaches me about the joys and struggles of life.

YEAR EIGHT

ARTWORK: "Rare Earth"

Rather than something to dig up and take, I think of “rare earth” as the places that possess a sense of spiritual solace and give us so much just by existing. I believe in respecting what you are given, and the earth and art have given me so many gifts. I don’t want to ever take them for granted. I feel a sense of something bigger than me in nature, and I know I am so lucky to get to paint it.

YEAR NINE

ARTWORK: "Everglade Cypress"

So much lies beneath the surface. We think we see it all, but it ends up being just a reflection.

The dark water in the swampy everglades was a good hiding spot for fish and other little creatures. It was also a spot I loved to watch birds as they hunted amongst the knees of the Cypress trees popping up from the dark water.

YEAR TEN

ARTWORK: "Loblolly Pine"

So much of the start of my journey was about opening up and exploring outwardly to gain inspiration and discover who I was as an artist. I traveled and hiked (things I still love to do) and experimented with creative artistic styles (something I strive to continue to do).

But recently I feel myself “coming home.” A year ago, I moved out of the city (I’d been living in Atlanta and surrounding urban neighborhoods for the past twenty years) and into a home closer to the north Georgia Mountains I grew up exploring. I finally opted back in for a quieter version of life.

And I have a new appreciation for a tree I grew up playing under - the Loblolly Pine. Loblollies were everywhere and honestly just part of the background growing up. So much so that I stopped seeing their beauty. But recently I started seeing it again…

at different times of day, different lighting, different weather, and in different landscapes. What a wonderful thing to be able to see something new in something you’ve seen so many times.

I love the light and shadows these big evergreens hold in their hands. I love the cooler temps they create in their shade and the houses they provide for the bugs, birds, squirrels, and owls in my back yard. In a way they've given me a home too. And I feel comforted knowing that they're there above me.

I’m happy to live under these gentle giants, and excited for what's to come.

Thank you for reading. Thank you for your support. And thank you for following my journey!