My name is Journey King. My art has always been inspired by the natural world. I grew up in a rural area in Chilton County Alabama and spent much of my time observing nature. This interest is reflected in much of my current work which features birds, insects and natural landscapes as a subject.

My art making process always begins with observation whether it be nature or scenes from my daily life. I think a common theme in my work is an appreciation of the little things. Mundane, yet beautiful, moments act as resting spots for me in the busyness of life and I feel inspired and compelled to capture them. My art has been described to me as peaceful and calming, and I think that is because my art is more a reflection of what I need rather than what I am. I’m a pessimist but I permit myself optimism in my art.

I enjoy working in several mediums including gouache, acrylic paint, relief prints and more recently, lithography. I also use embroidery in some of my pieces. Water based gouache has been my medium of choice in recent years. I love it for its range of opacity and its smooth texture that allows me to capture the finest details.

One of my earliest and strongest artistic influences was the Canadian landscape painter Emily Carr, I discovered her in my early teen years and was amazed by her ability to capture the essence of the landscape though expressive color and subtle abstraction of organic forms. Another great source of inspiration for me are botanical prints and illustrations such as those of Salley Middleton. The botanical woodblocks of Kitagawa Utamaro have deeply influenced how I view compositions.