In collaboration with the Sky Island Alliance, an Arizona based Organization that advocates for the Sky Islands. These Unique ecosystems are locked to the peaks of desert mountains, isolating them in a sea of inhospitable sea of desert, hence the name.

I kept all of my sketches and planning on the iPad to preserve the digital look I was going for. Inspired by the stunning fantasy illustrations of Hiro Isono, I made my core shadows a rich royal blue to give the piece a strident and overwhelming viewing experience. Uncharacteristic of my usual workflow, I kept my illustrations mostly contained to one layer to add energy. I wanted a feeling of intense sunlight and radiant heat in the first piece, leading to a bright yellow underneath the foliage at the bottom of the mural. For the second piece, I wanted a calmer composition with a sense of verticality and scale. The photography of Aaron Flesch was invaluable to my project, as he is the only photographer to my knowledge to take detailed photographs of the forests of Sierra Los Ajos. The brushwork is even more paired down to accentuate the bird in the foreground.