There is an existential dread that comes with living in our current society. We hear endless examples on various media illustrating how mankind is impacting the planet. We are bombarded with news about environmental disaster, the plundering of our limited resources, and the changing climate. We are further challenged to see many problems in front of us, but limited solutions. We wait for the new Green Economy to take shape, as we continue to be tied to one that offers few ethical alternatives. There are many ways we have had to resign ourselves to the destruction we are complicit in, on one level or another. It is from this place of frustration and heartache that this painting came to be.

The Gold King Mine disaster spilled 3 million gallons of mine wastewater and tailings into the Animas River, part of the San Juan River, and the Colorado River watersheds. This toxic concoction turned the river from a green blue to a Tang orange. A place once revered for its floating and recreational activities, in addition to supporting a variety of plants and animals, was now hazardous. It became another Super Fund site in America… another environmental tragedy that would be glossed over and forgotten in the national headlines a few months from when it occurred. Meanwhile, it will impact those river communities for generations to come.

The painting is titled “The Tourist/Just Passing Through”, as a way to pose a question regarding our relationship with the environments around us. In the painting, we can see a yellow substance bleeding out of the mountain and into the river. Animals along the waterway are witnesses to the destruction of their home. Across the landscape, a train passes without noticing what's happened. The dynamic between these two realities is stark and unsettling. And as headlines continue to drown each other out with the latest, to be forgotten just as quickly, it is important we pose that question to ourselves.

Are we a tourist on this planet, only concerned if it’s “in my backyard”? Or are we citizens of this planet, each environmental disaster being in our collective backyard? How can we find a way to move beyond guilty acceptance for the “way it is”, and begin the active creation of what it needs to be? Who is responsible for creating those changes? How do we use our own talents to help in the change? When we begin to answer these questions, we can move beyond the feelings of dread and reluctant acceptance. We can begin to be fully present in ourselves as we find our place and our purpose. Our calling in today’s world is to reflect on these questions, and most importantly, to answer them.