This painting is an original done in my home studio in Orlando. It is very large; it measures four feet by three feet and was completed in 2004. The medium is Acrylic paint on stretched canvas. It is part of my series of "vignetted" landscapes.

This piece was inspired by a paid vacation to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I am also a photographer and was commissioned to do a photographic study and painting of the area.

The vignette effect began as a happy accident and turned into a series to which this painting belongs. It focuses the viewer's attention and draws you into the woods, much as an old photograph would do.

On one of our outings, we were walking in a deserted forest where the only thing breaking the silence was the "swish-swish" of our boots moving through the dead leaves on the ground. Then there was a low rumble; then another. We were surrounded by bears! Ohhh noooo....

We never actually saw the bears, but I'll never forget that afternoon and the sense of silence and peace that I've tried to convey here.