The Black Range

The aurora borealis is not something you should expect to see if you live in  zip code 88042; Lake Valley, Kingston, Hillsboro, and adjacent areas.  But that is what happened last night.  At around 8 p.m. John West, Therese Van Buskirk, and Debora Nicoll took the following photos of the northern lights.  John’s photograph is the first in the following series, followed by Therese’s photographs, and lastly a photograph of the aurora behind Brenda Mountain by Debora Nicoll.

There is the possibility that the aurora borealis will be seen from this area tonight (11/12) and perhaps even on Thursday night (11/13).

Special thanks to Kathleen Blair for assisting in this post.

Amended at 9:03 to add the photograph by Debora Nicoll.

With the addition of two new videos (The Fluorite Mining District and The Lake Valley Mining District) the Mines of the Black Range video portfolio now includes 15 videos.

Whether they be green, brown, or black.  Whether they be tiny or huge (relatively).  Whether they fly or just hop.  Whether they are very much alive or smashed on your windshield.  It is a time of grasshoppers and they are everywhere.

Strangely, the fact that there are so many does not make it easier to identify any one individual to species.  Turns out there are a number of grasshopper species in this area, that each instar stage can look different, very different,  from its predecessor or what comes next, and there are significant regional and individual differences to contend with.  Great fun.  Well….

On a recent outing to Andrews (north of Animas Peak, by Copper Flat) hiking companions noted the jewels flying through the sky.  The wings of grasshoppers can glimmer in a variety of colors as they plow through the air, greens, turquoise-blue, yellows, and reds seem to predominate but some are more subtle.

I suspect that the individual shown above is Schistocerca albolineata, White-lined Bird Grasshopper.  It looks a lot like S. obscura, the Obscure Bird Grasshopper, but note the red hind tibiae.  

In describing this species, BugGuide notes that it is "Similar to S. lineata and venusta, but more contrastingly marked, with bold dark bars on the hind femora.  This species is dark olive green or brown to black, with contrasting pale yellowish markings, and bold contrasting markings on the hind femora, with the hind tibiae red to black.

Occasionally individuals are green with fewer pale contrasting markings, but still have bold contrasting black markings on the hind femur.  These closely resemble eastern S. obscura, but usually have red hind tibiae.  Their appearance raises interesting questions about possible hybridization, and they are often misidentified.”

Although the taxonomic boxes have been, more-or-less, sorted at this point which individuals belong in which boxes is still unclear at times.  

Other photographs of the individual shown above may be seen at this page.

I believe most people are mainly visual beings, and I would guess virtually everyone with the capacity for sight has felt stirrings deep within themselves when they see something "beautiful.”  The "beautiful" varies between us humans, but we each have the capacity to appreciate what we find beautiful.

I am an artist who primarily paints landscapes, relying on views that make me sigh with pleasure.  What grabs my eye varies from mountains to creeks, grasses to trees, cloudscapes to critters.  Nevertheless, whatever subject I find beautiful always has elements of contrast in colors, shadows and shapes.  Specifically, these are contrasts of lights vs. darks ("values" in artist-talk); contrasts of color (such as yellows vs. violets); contrasts of size and shape (think of a vast ocean view with seagulls flying overhead); as well as movement through the scene that allows the viewer's eye to travel and wander up and down, side to side, forward and back.

Example One: Hoodoo Hillside 

This image, west of Hillsboro and seen in full sunlight, was a marvel.  The contrasts are dramatic: orange rocks against blue sky and green grass; dark foliage in shadow vs. light green bushes and grass in sunlight; small rock shapes in the distance vs. a large bank of rock in the foreground; and the zig-zag movement of rocks, grass, and foliage that encouraged my eyes to walk up and down the hillside, noticing more and more as I wandered.  Everything about it was exciting and dramatic. It grabbed me and I immediately started to paint it mentally, imagining the contrasts I needed to push to ensure it would look as compelling in pastel as it felt in real life.

Example Two: Reverence 

Although quieter and less dramatic than Hoodoo Hillside, this painting of Percha Creek relies on the same contrast of elements.  Value is obvious by the mostly shadowed areas (darks) contrasted to the distant sunlit grasses and bright water (lights).  Color contrasts include reddish-brown dirt under blue-green grasses in the foreground, and blues in the water against distant yellow grasses and dull orange in the trees.  Size and shape differences are apparent with various rocks, trees and grasses.  Movement starts either with the large rocks lower left and moves up the creek to the upper right, or vice versa.  There is also movement from left to middle in the graceful, curving, young tree branches.

This quiet, peaceful scene required lots of shadow, with blues and blue-green pastels predominating.  I needed to work slowly and thoughtfully to bring out the serenity I felt when I first saw it.  No bravado needed here, just gentleness.

It is often difficult to pinpoint exactly why something strikes us as being beautiful.  After decades of painting, the why for me has become deeply ingrained in the presence of contrasts.  When you are out walking or driving and you find a beautiful sight, I suggest you try to notice the contrasts that are quietly forcing you to find it beautiful: the dark to light values, the subtle or dramatic changes in colors, the variations in size and shapes, and the movement your eyes take when viewing it.  For me, nature is a study in contrasts, it knows all the rules, and the beauty we find about us is most likely relying on those rules.

P.S. I mentioned I paint with soft pastels, "soft" because they disintegrate easily.  They are shaped like blackboard chalks, but consist not of chalk but rather of pure finely ground colored pigments held together with a minimum amount of binder, allowing them to be shaped into sticks. 

Editor’s Note:  Melody now paints in Tucson but during her time in Hillsboro we conducted an “interview" with her, featuring her painting.  Melody Sears - Pastel Paintings of the Southwest may be viewed in a video gallery on Vimeo (follow title link).  It is also an embedded video on our “People of the Black Range” page.  Whichever link you follow you will be treated to the technique and philosophy of her art.  You may also wish to visit her website:  Melody Sears Fine Art.