The bulk and majesty of a solitary bull moose moves deliberately through a forest of aspen. He appears and disappears as he weaves through the trees in deep snow. The mating season completed, this bull will drop his antlers soon in order to conserve energy for the winter. A new set of antlers will grow in the spring. /collections/animals/a_walk_in_the_woods/index.html A quiet place, far from the crowd with a stunning view; who says we are the only species capable of enjoying such moments? Would the feline see the beauty of the rich color and texture of his perch as well? "Steve," Andrea Lyman says, "chose painting the lynx from this perspective because at all levels, it is something few get to experience first hand." /collections/animals/above_the_forest/index.html "The massive bear, the center of attention and focus in most paintings, is relegated to the background. It blends into the dark forest and is upstaged by the delicate stalks and bright blossoms of grasses and wildflowers, equally beautiful and worthy of admiration. Black bears move silently for being such large animals. In my wilderness journeys I have often been surprised by their silent approach, either by accidental meeting, or by a deliberate visit drawn by the aroma of my supper." -Stephen /collections/animals/bear_and_blossoms/index.html Stephen painted 'Companions' shortly before his death in April of 1996. Created with a looser style than his earlier work, it is more a painting of light than subject, as though the wolves allowed the artist to better depict the sunrise as it shimmered through the pines, crossed their fur backs and lit up their frosty breath. /collections/animals/companions/index.html "I have a great admiration for the coyote. It's a survivor, very smart, quick, inquisitive, and independent. It's a beautiful animal." -Stephen /collections/animals/coyote_afternoon/index.html "On a steep and strenuous climb up a slope that I thought would take me up a mountain, the rock suddenly dropped away into space, and I realized I was on a ridge. Inspiration came quickly to create this painting of two mountain goats surveying the expanse of a clearing storm." -Stephen /collections/animals/end_of_the_ridge/index.html "Steve loved to glorify the small, easily overlooked beauties of nature," recalls Andrea Lyman. The artist perfectly captured this snoozing fox that looks like he'd rather be left overlooked as he naps in his nest of leaves, branches and dried grasses. /collections/animals/fox_dreams/index.html "Historically, the bison roamed not only on the Great Plains, but well into the mountains and forests, especially to take shelter from storms. This scene combines elements I love to paint: light, water, reflections, and textures." -Stephen /collections/animals/high_creek_crossing/index.html "I liken this image to a self-portrait. I don't really have a particularly favorite animal to paint, but I identify with the mountain goat: often solitary; climber of rugged cliffs high in the mountains; stocky, muscular legs for bounding from ledge to ledge; shaggy hair, bearded...well, you get the picture. By the way there are five goats in this painting." -Stephen /collections/animals/high_trail_at_sunset/index.html The bear was one of Steve's most-memorable and rarely-painted animals. The native Miwok word for the grizzly bear is the source of the name "Yosemite," which was Steve's favorite place on Earth. The quiet serenity of this image is a reminder of our fellowship with both the natural and animal world--goals which honor the memory and legacy of the artist. /collections/animals/moonbear_listens_to_the_earth/index.html "These quick, curious, and playful otters have suddenly discovered the plodding, deliberate turtle that has blundered into their riverside kingdom." -Stephen /collections/animals/new_kid_on_the_rock/index.html "On the Toklat River in Denali National Park, a mother grizzly ambles along the shore, intent on reaching a good feeding area. Her cubs however, are distracted by every little thing along the way." -Stephen /collections/animals/new_territory/index.html In the early morning mists of Noisy Neighbor, a solitary grizzly emerges from the forest, ambling through the bear grass along the lakeside. The glassine water underscores the serenity of the moment. Suddenly the silence is broken by the screech of a Stellar Jay, upset by the appearance of an intruder into his neck of the woods. Knowing it would be fruitless to go after the bird, the powerful bear just stands watching, while the jay boldly continues to chastise him. /collections/animals/noisy_neighbors/index.html "The lynx, silent cat of the far north, waits and watches, perhaps for a snowshoe hare to pass nearby." -Stephen /collections/animals/secret_watch/index.html "When I got down on my hands and knees to look closely at these flowers, my attention was riveted on the jewels of morning dew, their delicate form and color." -Stephen. This image is also available in the set of four paper prints of the "Wildflower Suite". /collections/animals/shooting_stars/index.html "The mist and clouds in the background, together with the wolf's gazing at something out of the picture, lends a mysteriousness - that feeling of something else out there." -Stephen /collections/animals/silent_snows/index.html "Although the focus here is on a bobcat, I was more interested in portraying the hushed feeling one gets in a very grand forest of old-growth trees." -Stephen /collections/animals/snow_hunter/index.html "I've pained this from the insect's point of view. I like to take on these different perspectives in looking at the intricacies and delicacies of the miniature landscape." -Stephen. This image is also available in the set of four paper prints of the "Wildflower Suite". /collections/animals/swallowtail_butterfly/index.html "This time, I've painted a lone black wolf as he takes advantage of this fascinating and intricate beaver dam 'bridge,' while the light of a golden sunset glows in the sky. In order to make this scene truly different, I didn't even picture the other animal in the equation. Instead, I created unique ripples in the water so you and the wolf know that the builders are nearby but you can't reach or see them." -Stephen /collections/animals/the_crossing/index.html "Some animal outside of the picture has intruded into the territory of this pack of wolves. This is happening at the edge of a frozen creek, where the layers of ice have built up into beautiful crystal terraces." -Stephen /collections/animals/the_intruder/index.html Wildlife and wilderness are sewn into a seamless landscape, the bighorn sheep blending almost imperceptibly among the rocks and grasses in the background. Andrea Lyman notes that while the warm, golden palette was unusual for Steve, it perfectly evokes the sense of a promise fulfilled. "After a summer of plenty," she says, "comes the satisfaction and ease of autumn. The sheep are well-prepared for winter...there's still time for them to bask in the sunlight." /collections/animals/the_long_autumn/index.html In The Pass, the placement of each bighorn sheep had symbolic importance for Steve. One stands afraid in the darkness. A second, somewhat braver, half emerges from the shadows, while a third has boldly crossed the abyss and steps completely into the celestial brilliance. Steve believed that people are in one of these three places of decision at any give time in their lives, and he hoped that we would all eventually have the courage to make the leap and stand fully in the light. /collections/animals/the_pass/index.html "I was very surprised on one of my backpacking trips to come across this flower. It looked like such a cultivated, showy thing. With tiny flowers like this, insects are the appropriate wildlife." -Stephen. This image is also available in the set of four paper prints of the "Wildflower Suite". /collections/animals/tiger_lilies/index.html "Before European settlers started exterminating them during the Gold Rush, there were tens of thousands of grizzly bears in California. My research has turned up reports of 2,000-pound bears and of hunters boasting of killing 45 bears in one year. By 1925 they were gone. Uzumati was the native Miwok word for grizzly bear and is the source of the name we use for the park today - Yosemite." -Stephen /collections/animals/uzumati_great_bear_of_yosemite/index.html "The black wolf in front of this rock is something you don't see right away. When you finally notice it, you realize it has been watching you all along." -Stephen /collections/animals/winter_shadows/index.html "This painting is mostly about textures and patterns. It depicts a bull elk with a harem of cows in an aspen grove. The format emphasizes the slender, vertical shape of the trees with their unique black markings." -Stephen /collections/animals/woodland_haven/index.html "From the haphazard beauty of blackberries, dried grasses, and autumn leaves rises a dead branch, the perfect perch for a kestrel." -Stephen /collections/birds/among_the_wild_brambles/index.html "As is usual with many species, the male wood duck is more colorful and more strikingly feathered than the female. But she has some gorgeous iridescent feathers in her wings too. They're called wood ducks because they often nest in hollow tree trunks." -Stephen /collections/birds/an_elegant_couple/index.html This image brings back a memory from October 1986, when Steve and I traveled to Glacier National Park to watch the salmon run on McDonald Creek. The waters literally ran red with salmon and hundreds of eagles blanketed the trees on the riverbanks, swooping down en masse to feed on these incredibly powerful fish. Sadly, this awesome spectacle of nature is a thing of the past. -Andrea Lyman /collections/birds/changing_of_the_guard/index.html "This is a study in contrasts. The complex and brilliantly iridescent feathers of the pheasant in a nearly black-and-white setting act as an accent on the landscape." -Stephen /collections/birds/color_in_the_snow/index.html Crimson Indigo is Stephen Lyman's portrait of a cheeky indigo Steller's Jay perched in a mountain ash. Stephen said of this painting, "The intensities of the colors play off each other, blue being a complementary color to reds and oranges. The loud colors for the raucous bird are appropriate, I think." /collections/birds/crimson_indigo/index.html "I camped here - the lakes basin of the Wallowa Mountains in northeastern Oregon - when a foot and a half of snow fell. This is the panorama I woke to." -Stephen /collections/birds/early_winter_in_the_mountains/index.html "Two arctic terns in a very balanced portrait. One is dark against a light background; the other, light against a dark background. One going up and one going down - a graceful, complementary relationship." -Stephen /collections/birds/free_flight/index.html As Andrea Lyman remembers, "Steve loved to glorify the small, easily overlooked beauties of nature. This is a Clark's Nutcracker, a kind of common nuthatch we saw every winter near our home. From far away it's a rather plain-looking bird, but up close Steve saw -- and captured -- the delicate juxtaposition between light and dark feathers on its wings." /collections/birds/handsome/index.html "Reflections on water is something I like to paint - the sparkle of moonlight in particular. Here, the elegant shapes of the Canada geese complement the moon." -Stephen /collections/birds/moon_shadows/index.html "Shrouded in winter mists, the graceful beauty of a great blue heron at the edge of a pond suggests a peaceful, oriental quality." -Stephen /collections/birds/morning_solitude/index.html "Imagine you are a bird perched in the top of one of these trees. This is the view you'd see - the beauty and majesty of a bald eagle flying over the forest canopy." -Stephen /collections/birds/october_flight/index.html "This painting is about quietude: a very gentle, relaxed, and delicate mood. The raindrops rhythmically drip off the branches, creating concentric circles in the water." -Stephen /collections/birds/quiet_rain/index.html "This beautiful, swift raptor nearly became extinct because of DDT, but now, thanks to conservation efforts, it's surviving and slowly returning to Yosemite. The painting celebrates its return, with the bird emerging out of the darkness, its head silhouetted against the illuminated face of Half Dome." -Stephen /collections/birds/return_of_the_falcon/index.html "I was catching my breath after a difficult hike through Cathedral Creek Canyon when this hummingbird flew up and perched on a branch about three feet away. So happy and full of energy, it seemingly stopped by just to cheer me up." - Stephen. This image is also available in the set of four paper prints of the "Wildflower Suite". /collections/birds/rufous_hummingbird_and_mountain_hemlock/index.html The patterns of myriad aspen branches created a fascinating background for this great horned owl." -Stephen /collections/birds/sentinel_of_the_grove/index.html "A female snowy owl sits on this windblown snag. These owls fly farther south in some years, often into the northern United States. It's rare and exciting to see one of these striking birds fly overhead and perch nearby." -Stephen /collections/birds/snowy_throne/index.html This work was a favorite of Stephen's -- he liked that it was a departure from his wide open landscapes. He was a quiet man who loved the serenity of nature and Far Eastern simplicity of design and focus. This print shows off autumnal aesthetics of color and texture -- the bright blue Steller jays contrast with the fiery orange of fall leaves and the dark maple boughs. /collections/birds/steller_autumn/index.html The American Kestrel, also known as the Sparrow Hawk, is America's smallest falcon, with the male sporting handsome rust and blue-gray feathers. The birds hunt along roadsides from telephone wires, fence posts, trees and other convenient perches into the low grass of meadows. As they fly and seek out their small prey they hover with rapid beats of their wings. /collections/birds/the_field_watcher/index.html "Red tailed hawks like to perch on telephone and fence poles and watch for rabbits and mice in the long grasses," Stephen Lyman said of The Raptor's Watch."I wanted to capture this particular hawk on its vigil because of the textures in the scene -- in the leaves of the blackberry bush, the moss lichen growing on the fence post and the plowed field in the background." /collections/birds/the_raptors_watch/index.html "A flash of blue accents the soft neutral tones of a landscape of fresh snow. The Blue Jay pauses on a snow covered branch. Now where did he hide all those thousands of acorns for his winter meals? Some he will never see again, because they have been pilfered by squirrels. Others will just never be retrieved, eventually sprouting into new trees." -Stephen /collections/birds/twilight_snow/index.html "I decided to do wildflowers because it's a new approach to portraying the wilderness. It's a close-up landscape, where I've brought the viewers to their knees, so to speak...to be more specific, to their hands and knees, to investigate and appreciate the beauty and intricacy of little tiny things they might otherwise miss." -Stephen /collections/birds/wildflower_suite/index.html This Greenwich Workshop limited edition "livre de luxe" is composed of fifteen lithographic folios of Stephen Lyman's most popular wildlife, wilderness and firelight paintings; five of his photographs individually numbered; a separate bound copy of the Yosemite Journal, excerpts from the artist's wilderness writings; and finally, the Into the Wilderness video, a montage of Lyman's photographs and paintings set to music. /collections/books/a_light_in_the_wilderness/index.html The Firelight Chapbook invites you into Stephen Lyman's campfire circle. Through interviews, letters, and personal journals, drawings, paintings, and photographs, this unique book allows you to discover the artist's innermost thoughts and inspiration. The Chapbook is individually handcrafted from the finest materials and assembled according to generations-old bookbinding techniques. It also contains the signed and numbered companion print "Lantern Light". /collections/books/firelight_chapbook/index.html Evening Light holds the promise of a peaceful night in the wilderness."I don't normally paint interiors," Stephen was quoted in his book Into the Wilderness, "but by doing a still life from inside a cabin, looking out through the window, I was able to get a different take on the wilderness experience. The candlelight serves the same function as a campfire, giving a warm glow to the scene." /collections/cabins/evening_light/index.html "What a ride it would be to join Saint Nicholas in his magical sleigh, silently cruising over a moonlit landscape of fresh snow!" -Stephen /collections/cabins/moonlit_flight_on_christmas_night/index.html "It's a different feeling from Evening Light, where you may have wanted to be inside the warm and cozy cabin," Stephen said. "Morning Light invites you to go outside and experience a new, warm day that is fresh and alive." Stephen Lyman's mastery of detail is revealed in the nuance of the candle's light, the colorful bouquets of wild flowers, lichen and the unique texture of the fir branches -- all of which are reflected in the window as well. /collections/cabins/morning_light/index.html "I have two young boys, and I wanted to create for them the magic and wonderful, warm-hearted feeling of Christmas. I decided to do a painting of the real Saint Nicholas - my interpretation of him, anyway. Indeed, he was a real person, a bishop in the fourth century, on the coast of what is now Turkey. He wore a red robe and was very generous, especially to children. I wanted to paint a character who embodied that love of giving." -Stephen /collections/cabins/the_spirit_of_christmas/index.html "The peaks of Oregon's Wallowa range are in the background, but the cabin is from my imagination. The feeling I've created is a warming one. The composition leads you to the front door, welcoming you home after tramping around the wilderness all day." -Stephen /collections/cabins/wilderness_welcome/index.html This beautifully embossed note card features Stephen's painting of a majestic bull moose moving through a snowy forest of aspen trees. The card is 8" x 5" and blank inside. The set includes 6 cards and 6 envelopes. /collections/cards/a_walk_in_the_woods/index.html This beautifully embossed note card features Stephen's painting of a majestic bull moose moving through a snowy forest of aspen trees. The card is 8" x 5" with "Season's Greetings and warmest wishes for a Happy New Year" printed inside. The boxed set includes 16 cards and 17 envelopes. /collections/cards/a_walk_in_the_woods_holiday/index.html A set of 10 fine art holiday geeting card with decorated envelopes. The card is 9" x 4" with "May the magic of the season carry you into a new year of wonder and joy!" printed on the inside. /collections/cards/moonlit_flight_on_christmas_night/index.html This beautifully embossed note card features Stephen's painting of a Peregrine falcon silhouetted against the face of Half Dome in Yosemite National Park. The card is 8" x 5" and blank inside. The set includes 6 cards and 6 envelopes. /collections/cards/return_of_the_falcon/index.html "A milestone in my career, this painting was a deliberate departure from my wildlife subject matter. It is a landscape, but with a very attractive element added, one that I have experienced many times in my wilderness journeys. As I painted, I could feel the excitement and meaning that this image would generate. It flowed effortlessly, as if it were meant to be. Are there any hidden animals here? Yes - in the background are nearly five million mosquitoes." - Stephen /collections/firelight/a_mountain_campfire/index.html "I'm known for my paintings of the mountains, but people go to the beach for the same reason they go to the hills - to experience the natural environment. It's fun for me to explore new ways of experiencing light in the wilderness...no matter what setting I find that wilderness in." -Stephen /collections/firelight/beach_bonfire/index.html "This was my second campfire painting. I wanted some continuity with the first, so it's the same size, and the fire is in the same place - as if you're sitting in front of it. I didn't want to repeat myself, though, so I changed the location to lakeside, the time of day to dawn, and the age of the fire, which is pretty much at its end: glowing and still warm." -Stephen /collections/firelight/embers_at_dawn/index.html The planet Venus (also known as the evening star) has inspired poets, painters and dreamers for millenia. As the sun sinks below the pink horizon, it appears, a sentinel to warn travelers to find a place to bed down for the night. /collections/firelight/evening_star/index.html "The beauty of a campfire is in watching its dance," said Stephen Lyman. "The ethereal qualities are extreme, playing back and forth from the hottest part of the flame to the coolest shadowed crack in the rocks. The alpenglow, rocks, trees, snow, clouds and dancing flames conspired to inspire me. The fire warmed me, it cheered me up and dried me out ... the experience was beyond words." /collections/firelight/fire_dance/index.html "The aurora borealis is a wondrous phenomenon. Throughout the world, it inspires legends and myths of spirits in the sky. The immense silent "curtains" of light move through the night, captivating everyone's attention much the way a campfire does." -Stephen /collections/firelight/midnight_fire/index.html "A favorite lake of mine high in the Sierra. I've worked into this image concepts of warm and cool, active and passive, bright and subtle, heavenly and earthly - a panorama using the fire and moon to suggest balance, an essential aspect in life. I also make use of my ever-trusty artistic license, as I would never build a fire this close to water, especially in such a fragile and sensitive alpine ecosystem." -Stephen /collections/firelight/moonfire/index.html "The season is late summer, and all the snow has melted from the mountains. So the campfire was not built to create warmth, but for the sheer enjoyment of seeing its simple beauty. The fire is blazing and very hot. I've placed you close to it, for an immediate experience right in front of you." -Stephen /collections/firelight/sunset_fire/index.html Stephen Lyman's vision for Thunderbolt was to allow the viewer to witness lightning's beauty and power closer than anyone would ever dare in real life. Stephen said, "Not having experienced even a close lightning strike, I nevertheless imagined the deafening crack of the atmosphere, and then painted the intense power and light flashing down an old juniper, exploding its bark and illuminating the surrounding rocks and trees." /collections/firelight/thunderbolt/index.html "Perhaps this seems an odd place for a campfire, but this cliff edge above Yosemite Falls is typical of where I like to camp. Fortunately, it's hard to go sleepwalking when zipped in a sleeping bag." -Stephen /collections/firelight/warmed_by_the_view/index.html "Ahwanhee was apparently the native Miwok people's name for Yosemite Valley. Initially, white men understood it to mean 'deep grassy valley'. Recently some researchers have questioned the original interpretation and believe Ahwahnee means 'wide gaping mouth.' The valley, however, is still deep and grassy with verdant bunches of bear grass along the Merced River." -Stephen /collections/landscapes/ahwahnee_the_deep_grassy_valley/index.html "Come September, an ordinary, unexceptional slope bursts into its colorful autumn glory. Here, one may by chance see a deer or two, and, after this initial discovery, perhaps find six more in the gathering, camouflaged by the intricate texture of the hillside." -Stephen /collections/landscapes/autumn_gathering/index.html "I enjoyed the opportunity to paint diffused light reflected from a pond in the Canadian Rockies, with one of the largest North American animals appearing quite small in relation to the vast landscape." -Stephen /collections/landscapes/canadian_autumn/index.html "Muir described Yosemite Valley as 'an immense hall or temple lighted from above.' Beneath the Cathedral Rocks and Spires, in late fall, after the oaks had turned color, the first snow had fallen, and the clouds and mist hovered around the cliffs. I gazed up in awe at the sacred beauty of this natural temple. Inspiration from wilderness is always present for me." -Stephen /collections/landscapes/cathedral_snow/index.html "I saw Yosemite's Half Dome, caressed by gossamer clouds and bathed in the fleeting alpenglow," said Stephen. "Can words convey this mountain drama? This is why I paint the wilderness. "Stephen Lyman's romance with Yosemite lasted a lifetime. The countless sunsets he spent clambering around its slopes and valleys left him with an understanding of the park and a reverence for the land that will never be duplicated." /collections/landscapes/dance_of_cloud_and_cliff/index.html "You'll notice that in the trees behind the mountain goats there's a ponderosa pine that's dying. The rusty brown needles indicate this. The cycles of life in each ecosystem are continually in motion, and I try to be as true to them as possible." -Stephen /collections/landscapes/high_light/index.html "Steve loved the Alaskan landscape. He would always return home from camping trips to Denali National Park reinvigorated, impressed and inspired by the area's vastness and beauty. Caribou, he felt, exemplified an animal that could survive only in an area untouched by humans. It's likely no one was within miles of Steve when he was taking the photos this image is based upon, an idea he would have appreciated." -Andrea Lyman /collections/landscapes/in_the_heart_of_alaska/index.html "This is the type of powerful landscape I most like to paint. Simply stunning drama. The original Miwok name for the lake in Yosemite, 'Pywiack,' means 'shining rocks.' The rocks around it actually do shine, polished smooth by massive glaciers thousands of years ago." -Stephen /collections/landscapes/lake_of_the_shining_rocks/index.html Idaho's Lake Pend Oreille has been admired for centuries, first by the Native Americans who drank from its still, clean water, then by the white men who came to hunt at its shores. "I like wildlife to play an incidental role in most of my landscapes," said Stephen. "The flying Canada geese, deer and crescent moon may not be evident on the first glance of this spectacular winter sunset. I try to suggest something that underlies the visible landscape. Here the wind ripples the waves." /collections/landscapes/last_light_of_winter/index.html Much of Stephen's artistic inspiration came from the travels and writings of naturalist John Muir. Yosemite's light, Muir said: "[is a] pale rose and purple sky changing softly to daffodil yellow and white. Sunbeams pour through the passes between peaks and over the Yosemite domes, making their edges burn." Last Touch of Light allows you a grand view of one of our most glorious national parks, Yosemite. Here Half Dome shimmers in the fading light, above the dark silent woods. /collections/landscapes/last_touch_of_light/index.html Through the eyes of an adventurer and artist, Stephen takes us to a place we seldom, if ever, would have the chance to see ourselves. He gives us a most spectacular view at its most vivid and magnetic time of day. He presents us with an environment as a whole, each element (animal, earth, sky and light) only compounding the allure of the last. /collections/landscapes/northern_reflections/index.html One of the great gifts of Stephen's life was sharing his intimate knowledge of Yosemite, which he literally knew from top to bottom. With his classic, monumental landscape Storm Over Tenaya Canyon, we soar high above granite domes. Steve often included wildlife in his pieces and sometimes suggested a narrative, but this pure landscape is a deliberate departure... almost certainly inspired by the dramatic images of Albert Bierstadt and other 19th-century painters of the west. /collections/landscapes/storm_over_tenaya_canyon/index.html "This spectacular view of Yosemite Valley and the High Sierra is from Eagle Peak, the highest of the highest of the Three Brothers. One winter I camped here for two days and two nights, sitting on this throne and enjoying the scene laid out before me." -Stephen /collections/landscapes/yosemite_alpenglow/index.html "This painting was inspired by the scene at the top of Yosemite Falls on the north rim of Yosemite Valley," wrote artist and explorer Stephen Lyman. "There, one has a panoramic view of Yosemite Point, Mount Clark, Gray Peak, Red Peak, Mount Starr King, Glacier Point, Sentinel Dome and Sentinel Rock." If you look closely you can just make out three figures atop a ridge on the left-the artist, his wife and a close friend. /collections/landscapes/yosemite_landscape/index.html "A wilderness phenomenon not so often noticed is a rainbow waterfall. Yosemite's Vernal Falls, however, is well known for this. The spring hiker, passing by this 320-foot falls, is guaranteed a thorough drenching." -Stephen /collections/waterscapes/dance_of_water_and_light/index.html Stephen Lyman said of this late winter painting of Lake Pend Oreille, "Pristine and suffused with golden light,it is accented by the bald eagle poised in flight with a fresh catch in its claws." /collections/waterscapes/north_country_shores/index.html "'Riparian' refers to the life zone along a waterway or a lake. The riches are the life inhabiting that zone - the fishes in the water, the insects the fish eat, the great blue heron that eats the fish, the frogs that inhabit the shore, the foliage, the lichens on the boulders. It's inspired by a bend in the Merced River near El Capitan." -Stephen /collections/waterscapes/riparian_riches/index.html "The river weaves through a landscape of ponderosa pine, over and under the ice and snow, all the while burning with the warm reflections of a golden sunset." -Stephen /collections/waterscapes/river_of_light/index.html "Pend Oreille Lake in northern Idaho is one of the deepest freshwater lakes in the country, over 1,000 feet deep. The Canada geese are on their migratory journey north for summer." -Stephen /collections/waterscapes/sounds_of_sunset/index.html Far removed from any major metropolis, Oregon's Wallowa Mountains have long been a Lyman family favorite. Steve would often take family trips there with his sister Shauna, and brother Scott. "As I camped by this lake years ago, I awoke in the morning to watch the crest of the ridge catch fire with the golden light of sunrise," Stephen said once in describing the inspiration for the painting. /collections/waterscapes/sunrise_in_the_wallowas/index.html