“Bountiful" is from Maura Allen's "Geography of Hope” body of work—a collection inspired by the writer and environmentalist Wallace Stegner and his Wilderness Letter (1960) in which he said the West—and American history—was shaped by a "geography of hope.” There’s long been the promise of a better future, a new start, out West. Land, gold, adventure, possibility, the place where dreams and desires have room to soar. In her "Geography of Hope” collection, she celebrates both the land and the dreamer by reversing the view and using an iconic silhouette as a window into the West. With a nod to both tradition and the land, each painting is named for a western town, most real but some fictional, brought into our imagination through film, song and literature. In “Bountiful”, she celebrates both the pride and the Native American culture's deep connection to the land. While the painting is named for a small town in Utah—the “bountiful” theme is a universal experience rooted in the West. Acrylic On Board, 40" x 30"
