In the dark, intelligent eye of Brennan Flach’s watercolor Turtle, we are invited to see not only a creature at home in its oceanic element, but a fellow being alive to the rhythms of the world, and vulnerable to its changes. As the turtle masters the deep sea over the course of its lifetime, it remains alert yet confident, gliding through the water with a grace that leaves land mammals awestruck. In Flach’s depiction, the animal appears luminous, with soft edges that imply its ability to disappear into the vastness of the ocean from which it emerged.

This piece won the 2020 Summit County Fair Council Art Award, Youth division.