A North Carolina Patchwork

Artist: Isabelle Berquin
 
About the Artwork: Painted a day at a time onto a single sheet of paper, this watercolor and ink piece highlights North Carolina’s state symbols and landmarks, with a special focus on the Winston-Salem area.
 
I created this painting as part of the July 2025 World Watercolor Month challenge, which invited participants to follow a published prompt each day of the month using watercolor as their medium. Each square of the patchwork is a loose interpretation of the prompt for that day, with one or several nods to our beautiful state.
 
For example, the prompt “Fade” made me think of the Blue Ridge mountains fading in the mist, “Ripples” brought to mind a brook trout (NC state symbol) in shallow water, and “Stretch” evoked a long bridge stretching over the water, connecting the Outer Banks to mainland North Carolina.
 
Prompt​ Description:
Radiant - ​Moravian star (State star, since 2026)
Espresso ​- Old Salem’s Coffee Pot, Winston-Salem, NC
Ripples ​- South Appalachian Brook Trout (State freshwater trout)
Fade ​- Blue Ridge Parkway, NC
Lock​ - Love locks at The Quarry at Grant Park, Winston-Salem, NC
Hat​ - Butner Hat Shop sign in Old Salem, Winston-Salem, NC
Melt​ - Cardinal (State bird) on a pine tree branch (State tree) with melting ice
Tired ​- Sleeping Eastern gray squirrel (State mammal)
Home​ - Biltmore Estate, Asheville, NC
Turtle ​- Eastern Box turtle (State reptile)
Spicy ​- Spicy food with Texas Pete bottle (made in Winston-Salem, NC)
Rumble ​- Stock-car racing (State sport)
Cavern​ - Linville caverns, McDowell County, NC
Stretch​ - Virginia Dare Memorial Bridge, Dare County, NC - longest bridge in the state (connects Roanoke Island to mainland North Carolina)
Dusty ​- Panning for gold (State mineral)
Geode ​- Emerald (State stone) geode
Chair​ - Largest Duncan Phyfe chair in Thomasville, NC
Rigid​ - Semi-rigid “flyer” used by the Wright Brothers in the first powered airplane flight in Kill Devil Hills, NC
Performance ​- Stevens Center performing arts center, Winston-Salem, NC
Kitchen​ - Krispy Kreme’s donut assembly line (Founded in Winston-Salem, NC)
Street Food ​- Southern barbecue sandwich and sweet potato (State vegetable)
Jacket ​- Honeybees (State insect) defending their hive against yellow jackets
Group ​- Cluster of scuppernong grapes (State fruit)
Avocado ​- Pine Barrens tree frog (State frog) and Flowering dogwood (State flower)
Howl​ - Red wolf (Albermarle Peninsula is home to the last known red wolf colony)
Sea​ - Scotch bonnet (State shell)
Drift​ - Whirligig (State folk art)
Weave​ - River cane baskets, made by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina
Submerge​ - Queen Anne’s Revenge anchor (Blackbeard’s ship), which sank off the Outer Banks
Ornate - ​Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (State butterfly) visiting a Carolina Lily (State wildflower)
Tower​ - Moor’s Knob Observation Tower (Hanging Rock State Park, Stokes County, NC)
 
Media: Watercolor and ink
 
Dimensions: 20" wide by 16" tall; framed to 24" wide by 18” tall
 
Framed: Yes