A Toad, a Jawbone & a Butterfly: Welcome to My Studio
In my studio, you will find a lot of the same things you might find in any artist's studio. Paints, brushes, collage materials and adhesives, substrates like paper and wood panels, all the tools of the trade. I've also got a small photo soft box, essentially a white fabric cube that diffuses light, with a studio light overhead, for photographing my small still life images.
A partial view of one of the shelves in my studio.
But the thing that makes most people stop - the thing that really catches their attention - is my shelves. Not the art books, though there are plenty of those. I'm talking about the natural specimens on display. Over the years I have accumulated all kinds of interesting things, and each piece has its own story, most of which I can still remember.
I thought I'd share just a few of those stories from one shelf, to give you a taste of what I mean.
Dehydrated toad, a gift from my friend, Jay.
Sometimes friends and acquaintances will find something that makes them think of me, which tells you something about the kind of person I apparently am. The first gem is a relatively recent acquisition: a naturally dehydrated toad. It came to my attention via a friendly message that began with "Do you want this?" followed by a series of photographs of this little guy. It arrived courtesy of one of my longtime artist friends, and when we finally connected to make the handoff, she also brought along a dehydrated tree frog and a couple of birds' nests. This is how I know people love me. I love you too, Jay.
Labeled so I won’t forget what it was from, my possum jawbone.
The second item is a small jawbone, from a possum. I know it was a possum because I saw it one day on one of my creek trail walks, freshly deceased. I didn't bring it home that day. I photographed it and kept walking. But I kept seeing it on every subsequent walk, checking the progress of decomposition - yes, really - and continuing to photograph it. It got moved around a bit over time, the skull eventually smashed, but this small jawbone stayed intact through it all. When it was finally clean and ready, I brought it home. Sometimes it really is all about timing.
Tailed jay butterfly, from Thailand.
A few years back, one of my daughters made a several-weeks-long trip that included Thailand. I was so happy for her and only a little envious of her, that's just how things are sometimes. I have always been drawn to the tropics and to the extraordinary plants and animals found there, so when she returned, she brought me something she knew I would treasure: a purchased specimen of a tailed jay butterfly. It is an exotic beauty in the collection and has already made its way into my artwork more than once.
These are just three stories from one shelf. There are so many more objects, and each one is precious in its own way; more stories than I can always remember, honestly, and more than I could fit into a single post. And that's just the shelves. I also have several drawers full of specimens that never even make it out on display…
If you're local, I would love for you to come see them for yourself. My Open Studio & Garden Party is this Saturday, May 2nd, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Antelope, CA. The garden will be open, there will be free succulent cuttings, and three of my artist friends will be joining me with their own work as well. Come wander the shelves. Ask me about anything you see. I'll remember most of the stories. RSVP for the address.
And if you're too far away to make it in person, I'm considering doing a video tour, one for the studio, one for the garden, if there's enough interest. Let me know in the comments or reach out directly. I'd love to bring it to you that way.
