Along Lake Hazen

9″ × 16”, oil on linen (2011) Quttinirpaaq National Park, Ellesmere Island, Nunavut, Canada

Ellesmere Island is a treeless polar desert, with colours that are more subdued than those in the South. On the edge of Lake Hazen, during my time exploring and painting here, I came across an exception: Blister Hill. The minerals near the top of its peak form a spectrum of rusty colours that can be seen for miles. I had to pull out my easel one more time as we hiked back to camp.