Madison Originals Magazine Madison Originals Magazine May 2014 | Page 30

o ri ginal art

commune less with the land, it becomes
obvious that nature must remain. We
must continue to look at images that
show a type of classical nature made new
again by a focus on local food, local flora
and fauna, and the importance of direct
contact with the natural world.
I recently spoke with Andy Fletcher and
Katie Musolff, an artist duo who live in the
Driftless Area of southwestern Wisconsin,
about the environment that inspires their
work and the partnership that fuels their
creativity. Andy and Katie are each known
for the vivid, meditative, and lyrical work
they create in paint and watercolor.

As early as 40,000 years ago, man
created images to communicate ideas.
We began to tell stories using pictures.
Animals have always appeared as subject
matter, while landscape has been in and
out of vogue since about 1500BC. These
are long-standing genres of art that are
continually changing, yet remain rooted;
just as our society and civilization
continue to grow, yet hold to long30 | m a d i s o n o r i g i n a l s m a g a z i n e

standing ideas about community, faith,
and communication.
The continuation of art genres like
botanical illustration and landscape
painting provide hope for a reality where
both the present and future remain
connected to the natural world that once
surrounded us all. As we trend toward
spending more time with technology and

“I think I’m known for doing a lot of
barns and things like that,” Andy says.
“I grew up in Waukesha and a big part
of me was growing up and seeing all the
urban sprawl. It left a mark on me. At 19
I started being concerned about where
my food comes from, so I started to paint
local spaces and farms and places that
were being destroyed; places I felt were
so emotionally important to living there.
And you take those places away and it
makes everyone so much less happy.”
Katie grew up in Milwaukee. She and
Andy met at an open figure drawing