Pine Cone Anatomy

Pine Cone Anatomy

It’s day 9 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

I learned about pine cone anatomy while making this painting. I had to figure out what the individual “petals” of the pine cone were called because I picked up a bunch of them in the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness. They are called cone scales, and I found them on the side of hill. What is so strange is I couldn’t find any pine cones in the area large enough to produce the size cone scales I found. Weird, huh?

I placed the cone scales in a circle to highlight their pattern and convey unity. The sea foam green wax references the beautiful color of the glacial lakes in the area.

PAINTING DETAILS:
“Below the Glacier IV”
6 x 6 inches
encaustic and pine cone scales on wood panel
Origin: 3 Fingered Jack, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Oregon
$90
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I backpacked into the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness to find the pine cone scales. Here is my campsite:

3 Fingered Jack Campsite - location of pine cone scales for 30 paintings in 30 days challenge

The paintings I create during the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge will be included in my NATURE CURATED series which captures the essence of place by encapsulating carefully chosen mementos nature has seemingly left behind in a thick bed of pigmented encaustic wax. To create these paintings I explore the ocean shore and forest floor to find the perfect, unique objects (shells, pine cones, driftwood and stones) to embed in a luscious layer of wax. All of these natural objects tells the story of its origin, like the smooth edges on driftwood illustrates the journey it took undulating back and forth against the rough ocean shore. Each three-dimensional fine art painting is unique, signed by me, ready to hang and includes the place of origin.