Description

110 x 110cm

This Signs of Wildlife painting in acrylic on canvas, is inspired by a family trip to Yosemite National Park in 2024. The incredible national park in California takes your breath away in all the ways you might expect it to.

The scale of the park is so different to any landscape I’ve experienced before. The high rock faces tower over the valley, but it’s a warm light colour range, almost luminescent in the sun. This gives it a light protective feeling. Standing like guardians of the forest, which seems to go on further than the eye can follow. It is not imposing, but certainly humbling.

Surprisingly, the signs of the national park, seem as much a part of the landscape as the natural features of the park we travelled so far to see. Blending in and standing out in equal measure. I began to photograph the signs, as much as the views that they were instructing me to photograph. We dutifully followed the rules on food storage, and garbage and walked cautiously (yet hopeful) to see a bear.

With the viewpoint of a tourist, I was travelling in a country made familiar by film and television broadcast in the UK throughout my childhood. Growing up with these signs gave them a fond nostalgic meaning, but not one I expected to enjoy in a National Park.

Signs are useful, but have purpose and function, not often things to seek out. Is this different to how someone growing up more locally might experience them? Perhaps the particular style of graphics in the signs, contributes to the whole viewing experience too.

Sadly there were no signs of wildlife this time (well, no bears).