Last week I started working on a commission for a friend featuring the illusive state stone of Michigan — the Petoskey. It is both rock and fossil, created from an ancient coral reef from the Devonian period.

I can remember spending my free time during a few childhood trips to the Traverse area hunched over in the gravel looking for a stone of my own. Which, to my great frustration I never found.

Having no real-life example in my rock collection, I was thankfully able to purchase a few specimens on online

I made a few sketches before moving on to the large version (24 x 24), but found that I enjoyed the sketches so much, I might as well make a few additional paintings after I wrapped up the commissioned work.

 

 

 

I made a small run of prints from this particular painting as well — check them out here!