The Natural Colors of Sacred Circle Limited Edition Prints

As I return to the Sacred Circle series this fall, I’ve been layering each archival print with hand-foraged pigments—colors gathered from the land around central Vermont. These hand-embellished prints carry the memory of the original outdoor installation at Spirit in Nature Paths, and each pigment is both material and storyteller.

Here are the natural colors that have shaped this series:

Sacred Circle Charcoal

Collected from the fire at the center of the Spirit in Nature paths, this charcoal is both a pigment and a namesake for the entire collection. Ground into rich black powder, it is a physical connection to past gathering, anchoring the work in place and community.

Goldenrod

Gathered at three points in this native wildflower’s season—early, mid, and late—goldenrod reveals subtle shifts in tone and texture. Early blooms bring a bright transparent yellow, while later harvests deepen into cooler gold. Each stage carries a different moment of the year’s turning.

Buckthorn

From the berries of an invasive plant, buckthorn ink begins as deep purple-brown before transforming into luminous greens and golds. Prized for centuries as a source of color, the plant is now nearly universally loathed. This complicated relationship helps remind me that sometimes a shift of perspective makes all the difference.

Wild Grape

Unlike domesticated grapes, wild grapes offer bolder, moodier tones—inky purples that deepen into rich blues. This pigment embodies resilience and intensity, carrying the voice of the untamed vine. The colors of the ink are fugitive; they will fade over time.

Not only were these colors an integral part of the creation of the original Sacred Circle  works, they were also captured when their color was fresh and bright, reproduced with a quality archival print on fine art paper, then hand-embellished with touches of the natural pigment--a continuation of the dialogue between art and landscape, memory and place.

I hope you'll join me at the Sacred Circle on September 14th, 2025 to continue the conversation, and see these works in person in the space where they were conceived. Thank you for being part of this community!

-Mira

Artist, Growing In Process