Texas Prairie - Gentle Hills in Springtime
by Connie Fox
Title
Texas Prairie - Gentle Hills in Springtime
Artist
Connie Fox
Medium
Photograph - Outdoor Color Photo
Description
In this roadside color photograph, the gentle hills of rural Texas, where the Gulf Coast Plains meet the Texas Prairie, show a lovely springtime display of Indian Paintbrush (Castilleja spp.) in the foreground. A subtle brush-stroke of Texas bluebonnets (Lupinus texensis, L. subcarnosus) draws the eye to a distant hill. Pale blue sky with soft white clouds.
We Texans are accustomed to seeing vast fields of bluebonnets in the spring. But I found this style of planting to be a refreshing departure from the norm. Here the Indian paintbrush are featured, and naturally so.
Indian Paintbrush are a common wildflower in the snapdragon family. In Texas, most often found along the highways or beautifying the fields and hills in or near the Hill Country. They are frequently seen mixed with, or planted in fields adjacent to, Texas Bluebonnets (Lupinus texensis, L. subcarnosus), as seen here.
As perennials, wildflowers pop up on their own. But Texas farmers and ranchers, inspired by Lady Bird Johnson's Highway Beautification Project decades ago, often seed their fields to provide solid flowers of a chosen color. Along the road itself, one usually finds a mix--often with one type of flower and color predominating, and others sprinkled in, creating random patterns of natural beauty. In Texas it is illegal to pick wildflowers.
Copyright 2012-14 Connie Steitz Fox. All Rights Reserved.
Please note: The watermark, if visible, will not appear on your purchased artwork.
Nikon D80. Nikkor 50mm/5.8 lens, circular polarizer, ND filter.
FEATURED on the homepages of Premium FAA Artists and Beauty, April 2014, Weekly Fun For All Mediums, May 2014, and Texas Landscape and Landmark Photography, August 2014. Top-spot feature in the ABC Group - S is For Spring, April 2020. Also featured in Off the Beaten Path, Images That Excite You, Just Perfect, and No Place Like Home, April 2020. Featured by Nikon Full Frame Cameras, June 2020. My thanks!
Uploaded
April 2nd, 2012
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Comments (44)
Gary F Richards
Outstanding springtime composition, lighting, shading, beautiful color and artwork! F/L voted
Connie Fox
I'm delighted with the homepage feature in the group No Place Like Home. Thank you, Jenny Soper, for choosing it!
John M Bailey
Congratulations on your feature in the Fine Art America Group "Images That Excite You!"
Murray Rudd
Congratulations Connie on being featured in the FAA Group 'Off the Beaten Path.' To ensure your feature remains available over time, post your featured image(s) in the Group's 'Thanks for the Feature / Image Archive.’ l/f/t/p
Luther Fine Art
Congratulations! Your fantastic art has been featured on the Home Page of the ABC GROUP from the S IS FOR SPRING themed week, APRIL 6 - April 13 2020. You are invited to add this wonderful art to the Features Archive Discussion in the ABC GROUP.
Connie Fox
Thank you, Judy, for your lovely comment. Thank you, too, for featuring this image in Texas Landscape and Landmark Photography. I very much appreciate that!
Connie Fox
Thank you, Chrisann Ellis, for featuring this image in Weekly Fun For All Mediums! I'm delighted!
Henry Kowalski
Newborn green and wildflowers beautifully presented; life is grand
Connie Fox replied:
Life is certainly grand in Texas, especially in spring. Thanks so much for your wonderful comment, Henry!