“These colossal old cottonwoods are found on most river bottoms in South Dakota. Gigantic and majestic, they mysteriously hold a hundred years or more of history in their gnarled and meandering limbs. In the summer they’re green and sparkling, and in the fall they have a golden glow to them. You get under them on your horse, and you feel like a little mouse because they’re just so huge. If you look on the tree trunks — it’s the pallet knife, and it helped create the texture. I like it because it’s fast and fun to get the paint on the knife, make a few strokes, and have the image and feeling I want. The background is brush where it’s just more subtle, but I wanted to show magnificence and more texture, so I used the pallet knife.”