Stressed Out—and Never Happier. Me and the arctic-alpine disjuncts.

In anticipation of my two-week artist-in-residency at the Grand Marais Art Colony in May of 2026,  I bought the comprehensive book North Shore: A Natural History of Minnesota’s Superior Coast by Chel Anderson and Adelheid Fischer. My desire was to learn about the complex natural history of the North Shore to inform and fuel my creative work.

At over 600 pages the book, while beautiful and often poetic, felt a bit daunting. The chapters follow the interconnected geography of the North Shore with five main sections devoted to the big lake’s Headwaters, Highlands, Nearshore, Lake Superior, and Islands. Short sub chapters detail aspects of the area such as animal interactions, impact of climate change, water ways, plant life, etc.

In the chapter Botanical Exploration Along the Lakeshore was a paragraph heading that made me laugh. Disjuncts: Stressed Out—and Never Happier.  I had no idea what disjuncts were but given my upcoming residency I related. I was a bit stressed out but also never happier!

It turns out Arctic-alpine disjuncts are rare plant species considered glacial relicts left behind after the retreat of the last ice age roughly 10,000 to 15,000 years ago. These extremely fragile species can be found hundreds of miles from their main habitats in the Arctic in the cool, harsh microclimate of Lake Superior clinging to the ancient rocky shoreline. May and early June are prime times for spotting these unique, small plants.

In his book The Creative Act: A Way of Being, Rick Rubin advises us that “The ability to look deeply is the root of creativity.” (If you don’t already own this book and refer to it daily, I recommend you buy it and do that.) Close observation of the natural world is the foundation of my creative practice. With my newfound naturalist knowledge of arctic-alpine disjuncts and abundant studio time, I was excited to start looking deeply and painting daily!

Here are two paintings inspired by arctic-alpine disjuncts, Mistassini Primrose (Primula mistassinica) I observed these lovely botanicals at Artist’s Point, a peninsula on Lake Superior in Grand Marais, on the last day of my residency.