MARGARET GARCIA

 Why I paint FIRE

I paint FIRE because in it’s terrible beauty it is mesmerizing and fierce, all consuming and electrifying. It is painful and takes no hostages. It is in my nature to confront what devastates me most. That is how I know to move forward.

When I met Rhett Beavers, a landscape architect he said to me; the earth is a repository of our history. So I married him. Our relationship fueled these paintings of fire and my knowledge of climate change and regenerative practices that are actionable and life saving.

I was born and grew up in Los Angeles California. Los Angeles sits in basin that the indigenous called valley of the smoke. Wild fires are part of the natural conditions of this chaparral. A chaparral is not a desert as the Department of Water and Power has promoted.

According to Wikipedia:

Chaparral is a dense, shrub land plant community found in California, northern Mexico, and southern Oregon. It's characterized by hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters, and is shaped by infrequent, intense fires. Chaparral is known for its complex biodiversity and dense foliage…

The word chaparral is a loanword from Spanish chaparro, meaning place of the scrub oak, which itself comes from a Basque word, txapar, that has the same meaning.

Is this a part of climate change?

Yes it is. People move here from the East coast and places that are verdant and green, not knowing that the spectacular views of the oceans, views of the valleys and urban views that twinkle with lights are match boxes that a light in combustible spontaneity that are fed by Santa Ana winds.

The ordinances that control the building and safety are much more concerned with landslides and mudslides which often occur during the rains after the fires have consumed the vegetation that holds the ground.

. The people need to use systems of grey water* and pool water to irrigate during these breakout fires. Xero-scaping our gardens with succulents and ice plants, plants that wither and don’t combust. The desire for green lawns, use too much of our precious water. Conservation of water is only part of the answer.

I would advocate cisterns, swimming pools, grey water reserves be part of the building codes that build in these areas. Any structure with a swimming pool, hot tub, or greywater reserve has to be part of the battle against Fires.

*Footnote: Grey water reuses water from your kitchen sink and bathtub not the toilet