I spent three winter months as a snowbird near Phoenix, Arizona in 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic was beginning. I had to leave early to ensure a safe and quick return home, as travel restrictions began to be imposed. But while there, the nightly sunsets were magnificent, the desert scenes breathtaking. The mix of different varieties of cacti against the brilliant colours of the changing sky inspired me to create this new series of 13 paintings, hence “A Painter’s Dozen.”