A New Polar Bear King Painting for International Polar Bear Day 2025

Looking back at the polar bear paintings I’ve created, the journey began in 2012 with a striking image of a young blonde girl facing off, nose to nose, with a polar bear. Since then, this majestic creature has drifted in and out of my work, appearing like a ghost of the North, a symbol of both strength and vulnerability. It wasn’t until 2021, emerging from the quiet isolation of the pandemic, that the polar bear took a deeper hold on my heart. As I contemplated global warming and the rapidly shifting climate, I found myself wondering—how does this magnificent beast adapt? How does it survive a changing world?

Like the polar bear, I am on a journey of exploration and adventure. As I seek out new homes for my paintings, new markets for my work, and fresh stories to paint, I feel a kinship with this creature—both of us navigating uncertain terrain with resilience and grace. This year, for International Polar Bear Day 2025, I celebrate the journey of the Polar Bear King in my art—now spanning over 25 paintings.

In 2021, I painted my first polar bear wearing a crown and began referring to this regal figure simply as “King.” It was a natural progression, a way to honor the bear’s commanding presence. Since then, a series of paintings has followed—polar bears posed in landscapes I’ve explored, sometimes appearing in almost yoga-like stretches or playful rolls across icy tundras. The crown has become a recurring motif: at times subtly hidden in the background, other times floating above the bear’s head, glistening in gold leaf.

A visit to Churchill, Manitoba—the polar bear capital of the world—is on my horizon. I long to observe these bears in their natural habitat, to witness the blend of fierceness and playfulness that defines them. It’s a striking contradiction: the world’s largest land predator who, when unthreatened, tumbles and skates across the ice like a carefree adolescent.

Now, with my 27th polar bear painting, I am telling a tender story—of family, warmth, and connection. The piece depicts two cubs nestled deeply in their den beneath the snow, a stark contrast between the freezing winter outside and the cozy world they’ve created within. Wrapped in a red eight-point Hudson’s Bay blanket, the cubs press into one another, their furry white bodies forming the shape of a heart. A King and his sister, bound by love and survival. Together, they are one beating heart.

This painting is titled Heartbeat’s Hum—a quiet rhythm, a shared pulse, a symbol of life enduring against the cold.

As I continue this journey with the Polar Bear King, each painting becomes not only an exploration of the bear’s world but a reflection of my own path—wandering, discovering, and finding warmth even in the frostiest of places.

See more Polar Bear King paintings here.