Sponsored by the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, artists Kate Fleming and Tom Woodruff bring their shared vision of the American landscape to life through The 50 States Project —a sweeping, deeply human chronicle of everyday America.

Fleming, an oil painter, printmaker, and documentarian, captures the overlooked beauty of the built environment—the parking lots, streetlights, and in-between spaces that define daily life. Working primarily en plein air, she paints directly from life to record fleeting moments of light and color before they change forever. Her work evokes a sense of future nostalgia , preserving the ordinary as extraordinary.

Together, Fleming and photographer Tom Woodruff traveled to all fifty states between 2019 and 2021, documenting America’s visual landscape at a time of profound transition. From glowing purple streetlights to quiet domestic still lifes painted during the pandemic, their work offers a vivid portrait of a nation both unified and diverse.

The project culminated in exhibitions held in Georgetown and at CHAW , allowing audiences to experience this unique artistic time capsule firsthand.

Visit the project website.