Canyons and Caves
Kristen Gautier-Downes is interested in water as a force of nature.
In places as arid as the Sonoran Desert where water is scarce, Gautier-Downes paints the rock formations that surround her, such as underground caves and deep canyons, many of which were once caused by the presence of water.
Gautier-Downes carefully captures the textures and color variations in the rock formations she studies.
In other bodies of work Gautier-Downes also paints what happens in areas of drought, such as the presence of forest fires.