In June 2015, I attended a studio intensive at St. Catherine University called The Women's Art Institute (WAI). Approaching this month-long course as a place to expand my painting technique, I focused on the connection between my subject and my materials. I was painting about the Mississippi River and other waters when I realized that I could be painting with the river elements themselves. At Hidden Falls Regional Park in Saint Paul, I collected Mississippi River water for the first time and carried it onto campus in two five-gallon buckets. With this water I created seven large, "washed" compositions, allowing the water and paints to flow over the canvas much like the river's current. I came to gather from and paint with other lakes and rivers, always portraying the rhythm and reflection of the waters I'd seen.