Sketched on site at Valley of Fire, New Mexico, Where the Spirit Watches explores the quiet tension between past and present, between sacred earth and settler encroachment. The mountains rise like old prayers on the horizon, while a windmill stands as a relic of western expansion. Birds, particularly the watchful crows and the lone soaring figure above, act as messengers and guardians—bridging the physical and spiritual worlds.
Through stark graphite and layered textures, this piece honors the land as more than geography. Though modern life has left its mark, the spirit of this place endures—unseen but ever-present, moving with the wind, perched in the limbs, and gliding overhead. It is not forgotten. It is simply watching.