This mural was created in October 2023, in the guest cabin sun-room on an organic date palm orchard in near Coachella Valley, CA.

I volunteered and lived on this farm for 3 weeks, getting to know and understand these beautiful trees through harvesting and care. Date palms represent exceptional resilience and abundance in a scarce landscape — here they are watered only with salty mineral well water and generously offer delicious, incredibly sweet fruit from March through October.

As many of my pieces celebrate, fruit bearing trees and fruit in general are overt sensual gifts the earth, embodying generosity, sweetness and abundance — delighting our eyes with bright colors and unique, sensual shapes, our noses with intoxicating aromas, and our mouths with juicy sweet nectar. Fruits represent temptation and pleasure in this way.

Date Palms are just about the only crop that will grow in this extreme hillside desert climate in southern California, which is not high enough for altitude chill and not low enough for cool air to settle, receiving less than 3 inches of rain per year.

In this way they are alchemists, transforming almost nothing into plentiful gifts with which they generously nourish the life around them. This is the work of the Goddess.

I felt called to honor Her through artistic representation after getting to work so closely with these beings. I was happy to memorialize this essence on the beautiful property that served as a sanctuary for my learning, healing and inspiration!