Description

The Old Way
 
Creamcups and Gilia at Abandoned Overpass, Picketpost, AZ
Bloomed 3-29-24
Oil on Canvas 40 in. x 50 in., 2026
 
$ 17,500
 

Although Arizona is a relatively new state (born in 1912), we have our share of old things; mining towns, military forts, and old routes from here to there. I have a habit of searching satellite maps and out the car window for signs of old roads. Since I moved here in 1989, so many routes have changed. Arizona State Route 87 to Payson, for example, is now a divided highway, and no longer dips into the little town of Sunflower. The old US 60 to Superior used to wind right by Boyce Thompson, but no longer.
 
Every once in a while, I like to include a little bit of the manmade in my work, because it tells a part of Arizona history that I’m interested in. This section of old US 60 is near a segment of the Arizona trail, winding around the slopes of an old volcano called Picketpost Mountain. I found it when I wandered off the trail one spiring afternoon. The bridge spans a section of a small tributary to Queen Creek, and because of seasonal waterflow, it is the ideal environment for little wildflowers. These tiny little beauties are creamcups and yellowthroat gilias, which are smaller than a fingernail. I thought the juxtaposition was interesting; little with big, natural with manmade, and a window to the landscape of Arnett Canyon beyond.
 
New roads may be faster, but the old way will always be more interesting to me.