Red Dirt and Alligator Lizards

18x18 inches

Mixed media on varnished, gallery-wrapped canvas

I adore the colors and the fiery lizard featured in this painting. Alligator Lizards are some of the most aggressive little wild creatures I’ve ever encountered and they were all over the place at one of the homes I lived in with my family in Paradise, CA. This home was on a sunbaked piece of property with a woodpile on a hill near a whole lotta rocks - perfect for Bluebellies (Western Fence Lizards) and Alligator Lizards. I would spend hours lying in wait to catch them, and when I was successful, I’d inspect them for a while then let them go. The Bluebellies were much more docile once captured - the Alligator Lizards put up one hell of a fight. The red paint represents the volcanic red dirt of Paradise with beautiful swirling blue of the sky.