A LIFETIME IN THE FIELD
These watercolor portraits reflect my love of scientific illustration, harking back to a time when nature guides were dense with gorgeous color plates of more-or-less precisely rendered birds and butterflies.
When I was five, my maternal grandfather, the artist and illustrator Arthur Cushman, sent me a cigar box containing butterfly specimens discarded by his employer, the Smithsonian Institution. Those carefully mounted and labeled specimens sparked a passion for insects, and half a century later I’m still a dedicated citizen scientist with an extensive study collection of my own.
My aim as an artist is to preserve a medium and a method of nature illustration that has been moved aside by photography and online searches. This demanding but deeply rewarding pursuit connects my present to my past, my lifetime to that of my beloved grandfather.
MY YEARS OF RESEARCH IN BOCAS DEL TORO, PANAMA
Field Work in Panama
For more than two decades, I have traveled to this chain of islands off the coast of Panama to camp, collect, and record the insect life. Learn much more by visiting my Panama Insects website and browsing the hundreds of detailed photographs.
PanamaInsects.org
This is my website detailing years of field work on the Isla Colon, in the Bocas del Toro province of Panama
Check it out! PanamaInsects.com
The Bocas del Toro Archipelago
The Bocas del Toro Archipelago
This amazing place has become my home for field work. My relationship with the Institute for Tropical Research and Conservation, a fine research station on the main island, has made all the difference. Learn more here.
MY SPECIMENS IN THE FIELD MUSEUM PERMANENT COLLECTION