Clark Island Intertidal is a series of oil paintings on canvas designed to focus on the beautiful, but fragile ecology of the intertidal zone of this small island in Wheeler Bay, Maine, near the artist's home. There, life abounds on the complex suite of granitic and basaltic rocks that are exposed twice daily during ebb tide. The rock shapes and mineral content reveal their violent origins from repeated continental collisions and volcanic intrusions hundreds of millions years ago. Erosion by glaciers and ocean waves over millennia shaped the rocks into rounded forms with crevasses and sand deposits that provide a niche for marine organisms that are uniquely adapted to thrive there. Of particular interest is the seaweed that clings to the rocks in partitioned niches: Chlorophyta (green seaweed) of the upper tidal, Phaeophyta (brown) in the mid-intertidal and subtidal, and the Rhodophyta (red) of the lower intertidal. Interspersed with these, one often finds Ascophyllum (knotted wrack/rockweed) and Chondrus (Irish moss). Empty shells of subtidal and intertidal invertebrates litter the sands between the rocks as a reminder that they, too, are a part of the ecosystem.

The viewpoint of this series is that of a child whose tendency it is to examine the world within arm's reach rather than in panoramic view. Indeed, this is a long-cherished and preserved characteristic of the artist herself. This intimate viewpoint reveals the voluptuous shapes created by organisms in stark contrast to the inorganic crystalline matrix of the rocks. Life finds a way to thrive in a hostile and dynamic environment, where evolutionary adaptations result in beautiful organic embellishments that are simplified and exaggerated by the artist.

This series of paintings is the marriage of the artist's two professions: artist and geologist/oceanographer. Until her recent retirement, she served on the faculty of Skidmore College in the Department of Geosciences where she taught courses and conducted research in geology, oceanography, and climatology. Her formal training in art began as a youth and extended into college followed by professional workshops. Katharine Cartwright's status as a professional artist extends to over thirty-five years. She is a Signature Member of the North East Watercolor Society and the Missouri Watercolor Society, and an inducted member of the National Association of Women Artists. Recent awards for her paintings include: the Morton J. Scully Memorial Award for Excellence in Transparent Watercolor, the Creative Catalyst Award, the Grumbacher Gold Medallion, and the Parker W. Dodge Award. Her paintings hang in numerous private and corporate collections in this country and abroad. In the geosciences, Katharine was awarded the University Fellow  by Syracuse University during her graduate studies, and earned numerous awards for her scholarship including: the Phi Kappa Phi Research Award, the Edward Emerson Towell Scientific Award, the Estwing Award, and the Marjorie T. Hooker Award. She served as the Chair of the Department of Geosciences at Skidmore College, where she taught courses for thirteen years. Katharine is listed in Who's Who, Who's Who Among America's Teachers, and Who's Who Among American Women. She resides both in Schenectady, New York and Spruce Head, Maine.