Collections I
Machine embroidery over layered fabrics on felt, applied to hand-painted canvas.
Research for my current work led me to museum collections containing
a wide variety of preserved bird specimens. They have a quiet beauty,
lying in their
dusty drawers. They bring to mind the hunter's trophy, arranged in life-like splendor
by a skilled taxidermist. John James Audubon's
legendary
works were painted
from carefully arranged bird skins which he and others collected. Their
poses were sometimes grotesque, for he might never
have seen the bird
alive. These things lent new meaning to the words still life, which I have
tried to capture.
Photo courtesy of Gail Harker
