"Pristine Amador County", by Bishop Maxim

The painter approaches this idyllic landscape with reverence, seeing it as a universal symbol and source of inspiration. The landscapes are both real and imagined. The site is orchestrated as a terrain where bison, lake, horses, trees, etc. form a grand rural space in which topography, soils, climate, water, and indigenous vegetation serve the life in Amador County. The author takes his cues from nature, seemingly random patterns occurring in nature without human intervention. To this “informal,” “romantic,” or "picturesque" approach he adds the cemetery suggesting a subtle, human accident.