El Camino
via Turtle Island
El Camino via Turtle Island is an art project rooted in a personal pilgrimage — an exploration of identity, belonging and the landscapes that shape us. My work has long been inspired by the natural world, particularly the nuanced and resilient beauty of South Texas where I was born and raised. Lately, my attention has turned to deeper questions about place and history, especially what it means to live as a person of European descent on land with a complex and painful past.
More than two decades after my first encounter with the Camino, I feel called to return. This time, not just as a traveler, but as an artist seeking to reflect, to listen and to walk with intention. This journey, which will take me through Galicia — the land of my ancestors — serves as both a physical and spiritual path toward understanding.
Through painting, writing and documentation, El Camino via Turtle Island will unfold as a creative offering — one that aims to bridge landscapes, cultures, and histories through a lens of reverence and curiosity.
“A pilgrimage takes place upon two paths, the outer path on which our feet tread and the inner path of the soul.”
-John Brierley, A pilgrims guide to the Camino Inglés
My journey is both physical and symbolic. This path has deep historical and spiritual roots. For centuries, pilgrims have walked it seeking healing, clarity, and penance. I take these steps as an artist, but also as a human reckoning with the complexities of identity and collective responsibility.
This Camino is offered in quiet reflection for those whose struggles too often go unseen:
For Indigenous peoples—here and around the world—whose lands, cultures, and lives have been harmed by colonization
For environmental stewards striving to protect what still lives
For families and children caught in violence and war
For the non-human world, whose rhythms sustain us and whose suffering we’ve long ignored
These intentions are rooted not in ideology, but in care—echoing the calls for justice, healing, and ecological responsibility voiced by people of faith and conscience across traditions. I walk with the hope that through reflection, art, and shared stories, we might come into deeper alignment with the world and with each other.
The landscapes I paint are extensions of that same intention. They offer a space—not to escape reality, but to hold it with care.
Within the shifting light, the quiet patterns of wind and growth, I find a place to sit with the full complexity of the human experience.
Beauty, for me, is not a distraction from suffering — but a way to face it. Love, expressed through careful attention to the land, makes room for truths that are too heavy to hold alone.
I’m currently seeking sponsorship and support to help bring this vision to life, and to share its unfolding with a wider audience. If this project resonates with you, please consider one of the Sponsorships listed below.
Thank you Sponsors!
Thank you Sponsors!
Deepest thanks to the businesses supporting this journey of art and ancestry. Your partnership helps bring this project to life.
Be Part of the
Journey
Art, Process, and the Path Ahead
Your sponsorship helps make this project possible by covering key aspects such as travel expenses for the pilgrimage, art materials and documentation tools, as well as the development of an exhibition and accompanying reflections to be shared with the public.
Your support is more than financial — it’s an investment in a journey that seeks to foster reflection, connection, and dialogue through the lens of art. In return, sponsors will receive early access to works created during the project, acknowledgment in exhibitions and publications, and opportunities to engage with the creative process along the way. Learn about the different levels of sponsorship below.
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Supporter
Thank you for supporting this project! At this level of sponsorship, you'll receive:A 9” x 12” digital artwork titled Ready to Fly, newly released and delivered via email (see image)
Weekly updates from the Camino Residency
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Fellow Traveler
El Camino via Turtle Island is a journey from the Texas coast to the Spanish coast. Enjoy a print of these spoonbills from my starting point. Sponsors at this level receive:A 10” x 20” print on watercolor paper of my painting, Spoonbills (see image)
A 9” x 12” Ready to Fly, digital artwork, emailed as a high-resolution file
Weekly updates from the Camino Residency
20% off any one artwork
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Pilgrim’s Patron
At this level, I’m offering a graphite painting created on-site in Galicia, where I’ll be exploring the landscapes of my ancestors. These are meditation paintings I use to listen and learn from the world around me. Sponsors at this level receive:One of five original graphite paintings created on location, delivered Fall 2025
A 10” x 20” print on watercolor paper of my painting, Spoonbills
A 9” x 12” Ready to Fly, digital artwork
Weekly updates from the Camino Residency
20% off any available artwork from the Camino series
Sponsor listing on the El Camino via Turtle Island webpage
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Creative Collaborator
Become part of the creative process by selecting an image from the Camino Residency to be transformed into a one-of-a-kind oil painting. Sponsors at this level receive:A custom 20” x 30” original oil painting inspired by the Camino, delivered Summer 2026
A 10” x 20” print on watercolor paper of my painting, Spoonbills
A 9” x 12” Ready to Fly, digital artwork
Weekly updates from the Camino Residency
20% off any available artwork from the Camino series
Sponsor listing on the El Camino via Turtle Island webpage
All levels of support are deeply appreciated
and will be acknowledged with gratitude.
"Ready to Fly" – Digital Artwork (9” x 12”)
All sponsors will receive a high-resolution digital file of Ready to Fly as a thank-you gift — an image created to celebrate new beginnings and the spirit of the journey.
"Spoonbills" – Archival Print (10” x 20”)
Inspired by the Texas coast, this print is offered on watercolor paper to sponsors at Levels II, III, and IV — marking the starting point of the journey.
Graphite Painting Example
This piece was created during an artist residency on an island in the Laguna Madre. Level III sponsors will receive a similar original graphite painting, made on location during the Camino Residency in Galicia, Spain.