Essay by Tanya Kane on Autumn's Loft

Autumn’s Loft: Mother Nature’s Inspiration in my Own Backyard


“Let us a little permit Nature to take her own way; she better understands her own affairs than we” ( Michel de Montaigne, translated from French, N.d.).

I found a local artist and art studio for the subject of my final essay, and I was not only able to study and analyse a selected piece, but I also gained insight into the local art business here, while visiting Autumn’s loft in Priest Lake, Idaho. I contacted the proprietor Autumn Oscarson, a North Idaho native artist, and secured an interview with her at her studio and shop, as well as bought one of her best photographs, (shown here with myself ) of our local Priest Lake, entitled: “Fall from Above” N.d., for the subject piece of my art review essay. I feel that I have succeeded in my search to find an appropriate artwork, one that really represents the area that I live in, and one that can communicate it’s message on any wall, anywhere. This photograph is calming, serene, thought provoking, and the quintenscential window into “Autumn” in the Northwest, no pun intended. I respected the value of this piece so much that I bought it. Need I say more?

At first glance, Autumn’s shop is a kaleidoscope of the handiwork of multiple local artisans. This is true, because the North Idaho Panhandle abounds with the natural beauty and bounty of the four seasons. Fall especially arrives with a multitude of colors, wildlife activity, and raw materials with the harvest. This season also brings with it the inspiration, and natural supplies that eventually find their way to the local artisans who create arts and crafts for Autumn’s Loft, courtesy of Mother Nature.



I found Autumn Oscarson online while I was searching for local visual artwork sources for my essay. I discovered her because of her self-promotion efforts, which include a well-done web site, business cards, brochures, membership in local art and business organizations, her own retail store, and a listing in the yellow pages. She uses the best quality cameras for photographing animals and landscapes.




Autumn’s photograph of Priest Lake is a prism into the natural world we both live in. This is a very beautiful panoramic version of a photograph of Priest Lake, Idaho, with the Selkirk Mountains in the background. The artist printed the original photograph in color on lightly textured watercolor paper, and it was matted as shown in the photograph of myself and the artist. The size of the photo displayed is 24.5 X 35 cm, with the title hand written in gold on the back, and the words: Priest Lake, Idaho digitally superimposed in light blue (very close to the color of the lake), in a text box above the artist’s name in the lower right hand corner. She has placed her artist’s credit signature “Autumn”, in gold below that, with a small crucifix above and to the right, reinforcing her spiritual beliefs. I believe the elevation, time of day, and geographic orientation of the shot for this photograph was excellent. I can see that she cleverly used the natural shadowing available in the scene’s foreground, to partially obscure what appears to be commercial activity at the bottom of the shot. This detail unattended to, would obviously take away from some of the natural beauty of the landscape. I can see the scenic fall seasonal colors of greens, gold, crimson tones, shades of brown, and the blue hues of the lake. The mountains with their white peaks covered in snow, dominate the background along the horizon. I can see asymmetrical lines along the ridge line in the background, as they seem to touch the light-blue sky. In the heart of the photograph is Kalispell Island, named for the local native tribe of Kalispell Indians. It appears pristine, and it’s fall colors are starting to be seen on the trees. The lake drains into the Priest River south to the Pend O’reille River, a few miles south of my home. Again, the digital copy shown here in panorama, is a variation of the photograph I bought from Autumn Oscarson.

In conclusion, this photograph, along with a rare in-depth conversation with the artist, an analysis of the “real-world” of art creation, has reinforced my artistic and professional aspirations to become a professional fine artist without leaving the home that I love. I believe anyone can see through the eyes of Autumn’s photograph just how beautiful it is here. My own studio, though incomplete, is a Ukrainian goulash of my artistic dreams. I live in the forest along the river, with all kinds of animals, an environment much similar to Autumn’s. Like her, I draw inspiration from the natural world here in North Idaho, and I understand why she loves this area, not only for her art, but for her home. I also love to go hiking, fishing, and studying with my notebook down by the river with my German Shepherd, and my pistol. I think this is a magical place, one that I love so much, and one that is so far from the industrial city I knew in Ukraine. I am so glad to have brought my young children here with me, so they can experience and create Mother Nature’s art as well. I just want to say that I really think that Autumn Oscarson is a very professional artist, and an inspiration to me and my family, because I now know for sure that we can do this.

So let us begin.