This series examines our current landscape in the context of the historical Western expansion of the United States. Each painting juxtaposes a current view of a specific location with written passages from nineteenth-century journals and other original historical documents. I have painted each place as it exists today, and locations are researched to be as accurate as possible, and usually within 100 feet. 

European American settlement was framed as a divinely-ordained project to build a more perfect society, a “city on a hill”. Yet creating this American utopia caused horrific Native American bloodshed and cultural dislocation, profound environmental degradation, significant settler struggle and moral compromise. 

These pieces seek to ask a central question: does our contemporary landscape manifest our American ideal? After heavy costs over many years, was this what we wanted, or was there something else we desired?

Installation note: text and graphic accompanying each piece can either be printed on the wall (silkscreen), or printed on cardstock next to each painting.