If there is one painting that captures the spirit of Sedona at night for me, it’s Coyote’s Lunar Serenade. This work is less a depiction of a scene than a translation of a sound—the haunting call that coyotes share across canyons when the moon is high and the air is silver. I wanted viewers to feel that voice in their bones: a little lonely, a little communal, and completely alive.
I painted this piece in fluorescent acrylics because I wanted the night to carry its own internal light. In daylight, the surface vibrates with saturated violets, ember oranges, and deep midnight blues. Under black light, the original transforms: pigments ignite, edges sharpen, and a subtle 3-D dimensionality makes the composition feel as though it’s expanding into the room. Collectors who have seen the original describe it as having two souls—one revealed by day, another by night. That transformation belongs only to the original, but even reproductions—canvas gallery wraps, luminous metal prints, and giclée art prints—retain much of the layered glow that makes this painting resonate.
The coyote in the foreground is the voice of the painting, silhouetted against Sedona’s glowing sky. But the Serenade is also a game of discovery. Look closely and you’ll find a second, hidden coyote embedded in the desert forms. Tucked into the textures at the base is a roadrunner—a playful nod to Sedona’s quick-footed resident. That roadrunner carries extra meaning for me, as it was painted in by my good friend Robert Shields of Shields and Yarnell. His touch adds humor and ties the Serenade directly to Morgan, my Sedona’s Red Rock Roadrunner. And like many of my works, this painting includes hidden hearts, personal invitations to keep looking and keep finding.
My connection to this piece goes even deeper. Years ago, during a psychic reading, I was told that my spirit guide was a Navajo Indian. That vision has shaped my relationship to the Southwest and influenced how I see the coyote in this work. In Navajo tradition, the coyote is both trickster and teacher, guiding with paradox and surprise. Coyote’s Lunar Serenade embodies that spirit, balancing mystery with joy, solitude with community, teaching with play.
Collectors often tell me this painting transforms their spaces. In natural light, it radiates warmth and presence. With soft UV accent lighting, it becomes something more—a small theater where the Serenade feels alive. This duality, combined with its hidden layers, makes it one of the most enduring works in my Top Nine collection.
Coyote’s Lunar Serenade lives comfortably alongside Sedona’s Red Rock Roadrunner (Morgan), another fluorescent acrylic that thrives on humor and speed—Beep Beep! It also dialogues with Sedona’s Hypnotic Earthrise, which tilts the same glowing sky toward the cosmic. Together, these works create a constellation of glowing nights, each with its own music and mood.
Why do collectors keep coming back to the Serenade? I think it’s because the coyote’s call is something we recognize, even if only in memory. It becomes a mirror for twilight hikes, distant howls, or the sense that Sedona is speaking. That’s what I tried to paint—an echo that lands not just in the ear, but in the heart.
Explore Coyote’s Lunar Serenade and the full “Top Nine” collection here: