A few years ago, we visited some of the old Spanish California missions with their distinctive walled adobe courtyards. Old flower gardens add charm, frangrance and a haven for birds. This mission wall supported a very old fuchsia and a variety of hummingbirds.

I knew there was a painting here - old cracked ochre adobe, fuchsia blossoms, a black-chinned hummingbird. The mission wall enclosed a sense of timelessness - and continuity.

- Terry Isaac