Calico Basin inside Red Rock Canyon State Park is a wonderful place to climb and hike. The trails are developed next to beautiful sandstone sculptures of amazing rock formations. Calico 1 Trail has Panty Wall with each route named by climbers to be quite humorous. Along the path to the marvelous climbs, I stumbled upon a lovely ridge of rocks. At the edge of the striations I saw a woman leaning back on the mountain for support. On her head I envisioned that she was carrying a basket of clothes, food, or water. She appeared fatigued in the hot desert sun but strong and willing to do her work. Also, she was wearing a sarong fashioned into a dress. The colors of the rock were contrasted with the background in such a pleasant way.
When I got home and looked through my photographs, I knew I had to paint her. I loved the way the shadows danced with their lines and flow. Almost as if they were moving like water into the red sandstone where she was resting. I chose cool colors to show the difference between her warmth and the heat of the sun. It was fun picturing a waterfall or river coming to soothe her as she worked so she could quench her thirst. I focused on the light in this painting and tried to illuminate the spirit of the woman that I saw. What do you see in the rock? Have any of you ever been on this hike in Red Rock Canyon and seen this woman of the rock?
-Karen Hilliard