Coyote Brush, our namesake plant, is a hardy shrub native to California that takes root in difficult soils and allows other plants, like oak trees and sages to establish themselves. It grows on sunny hillsides and canyons, in grasslands, oak woodlands, coastal and chaparral habitats. When we started Coyote Brush Studios in 2015, it was the plant that surrounded our studios, impossible to ignore when looking out of our windows. True to its nature, much of the coyote brush that was here when we first began has completed its lifecycle and has given way to new plants- young coast live oaks, poison oak, yarrow and more, and the landscape has changed and grown nearly as much as we have in over 10 years!

Coyote Brush Studios was founded after we (Tina and Lindsey) graduated from art school in 2014 and were looking for a way to work together using our combined talents and skills. Tina’s body of work from college was focused around extinct North American species, and Lindsey’s favorite parts of design school were exhibition design, infographics and packaging. Around the same time, we were beginning to dive deep into learning more about the native plant and animal life that surrounded us and the rich biodiversity of the California floristic province- the species that weren’t extinct, and yet were threatened, living right in our own backyards, not halfway across the globe. We were frustrated that these species weren’t better represented in art or merchandise, both by mainstream and small makers alike.

From our first piece in 2015 (our California Alphabet Poster) we’ve sought creative ways to infuse California’s flora and fauna into the everyday objects ever-present in our lives. Our hope is that by appreciating and learning about these plants and animals more regularly, people will be inspired to take action to protect their habitats, educate others, and advocate for local biodiversity.

Each of our projects is a labor of love, from researching to illustrating the biodiversity of California to designing, producing and packaging the finished products. Our research takes many forms: reading new and old texts, traveling across the state, consulting with and learning from wildlife biologists, visiting museums and sketching from their collections, taking classes on natural history and science, and more. 

Tina takes all of her own reference photos and then spends hours painting the watercolor illustrations that are used in each project. We then get to share our research with others in the form of social media posts, fun facts inserts that accompany the products, informative zines and by meeting customers in person at events and nerding out about our favorite species together!

An essential component of our work is using our success to help others. We donate a portion of our profits twice annually to nonprofits and organizations in California who are working to protect and support California’s flora, fauna, land and people. You can view a list of the organizations we’ve supported here. We believe that art is political, and that social justice is interconnected with environmental justice. As such you’ll notice frequent fundraiser and donation items we create in our Social Justice and Donations collection and featured on our social media.