Waxy, furry, tiny signs of spring

Tired of winter and desperate for spring color, artist Sadie Clarendon went hunting recently for April flowers on public land near Laramie. 

“This year I saw buttercups on April 6 and then the pasque flowers on April 13,” Clarendon said. “I like the ones that come out first because they have these biological ways to keep themselves from freezing.” 

The buttercups are waxy. The pasque flowers are covered in fur. 

She looks for clues in the topography to find these tiny harbingers of warmer, verdant days to come. 

“Maybe they’re in these little swales where they’re getting the snow melt,” Clarendon said.

“You start noticing things about how the ecosystem is working.”

She’s returned to the same spot every April since 2022. 

Her floral finds reappear in her ceramic creations. 

“I just finished a run of pasque flower mugs.”