MYAKKA IN SPRING | Niki Butcher

Myakka River State Park © 2014

Photographic Story Nature can be a refuge when life becomes difficult. After my husband, Clyde, had a stroke in 2017, we looked for nature closer to home and found Myakka River State Park to be a place where we could work through our grief and adjust to learning how to cope with the physical challenges following Clyde’s stroke. Our time in Myakka calmed our emotions and helped us heal and enjoy our new life. Nature has been good therapy for both of us. It is not only a joy for us to be out photographing together, but the peace found in nature calms our souls. The Art of Hand Painting Black and White Photographs Photographed with a Sony digital camera and instead of oil painting with Q-tips and cotton balls, Niki was able to paint using Photoshop. Changing from the old-fashioned way of doing her art, to the new ‘fashion’ of using technology was challenging, but she’s enjoying getting back to her own personal expression. Archival Print Making Niki’s open edition gicleé artwork is printed on Sunset Bright Velvet Rag matte finish paper using eight archival inks. A state-of-the-art Epson Stylus Pro printer creates deep, rich dark values that hold subtle detail in the shadows as well as bright vivid colors that are truly tropical.