This revelatory book combines an exhibition catalogue with a visual journal of one artist's process: from original photograph to finished painting. "The Way to Wilder", a solo exhibition at the Boise Art Museum in 2016, is a body of work based upon a rainy road trip to Wilder, Idaho. Karen Woods--from the passenger seat on this road trip--took pictures of the excursion through the rain-soaked windshield and later developed them into prints. From these 4" x 6" snapshots she created fourteen large-scale paintings for the exhibition. In addition, she photographed the progress of each painting through its various stages. Pictures of a painting's development are not normally shared by artists. But Woods not only wants to include the reader on the journey to Wilder with her; she also wants to include them on the painting journey as well. The reader can follow this journey that begins with a snapshot, continues with large strokes of color on canvas, and then is refined until it communicates the essence of the experience.

Unlike many in the "realist" genre of painting, Woods uses a less-than-methodical approach to achieving a faithful representation. But rather than trying to explain it verbally, she has instead created a picture book of sorts for the reader to comprehend the process in a visual way. It's a chance for the reader to see through the eyes of the artist as she engages with paint, canvas, time, memories, and snapshots from a trip to Wilder.