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Insects
Insects is a laser-cut, hand assembled carousel artist's book that explores the remarkable forms and intricate structures of some
of nature's smallest inhabitants. When opened, the book expands into a circular sculpture, revealing a sequence of layered
paper scenes featuring butterflies, dragonflies, bees, ladybugs, and a praying mantis surrounded by stylized botanical elements.
Unlike traditional botanical or natural history illustration, the imagery is intentionally rendered in a nearly monochromatic palette.
The absence of predetermined color emphasizes line, pattern, texture, and negative space, allowing the precision of the paper
engineering to become the primary visual language. Multiple layers create depth and shifting shadows that change as the
viewer moves around the sculpture, producing an experience that is both graphic and dimensional.
Each spread isolates a different insect within its own carefully composed environment while contributing to the rhythm of the
book as a whole. Delicate wing structures, segmented bodies, flowering plants, and organic forms are reduced to essential
silhouettes, revealing the elegance of these familiar creatures through the medium of cut paper.
Constructed from archival papers and designed to be viewed from every side, Insects functions simultaneously as a book, a
sculpture, and an exploration of paper's ability to describe complexity through subtraction rather than addition. The work invites
close observation, rewarding viewers with new relationships between light, shadow, and form as the pages unfold into a
complete circular composition.
Artist Statement
Insects grew from my fascination with the quiet lives unfolding around us—creatures so common that they are often overlooked,
yet so extraordinary that they reward anyone willing to pause and observe. By stripping away nearly all color, I chose to leave
one of the most expressive elements of the work unfinished. The butterflies, flowers, dragonflies, bees, ladybugs, and praying
mantis exist in shades of white, inviting each viewer to complete the images through memory and imagination rather than
through my decisions.
That intention became unexpectedly meaningful when a collector asked to purchase an unassembled copy so she could color it
herself before constructing the book. Watching another person interpret the work confirmed something I had long believed: an
artist can begin a conversation, but the viewer completes it. Every experience, every memory, and every imagination brings the
work to life in a different way.
The insects themselves are woven from moments that have remained with me throughout my life. Ladybugs have always
represented both childhood and good fortune. My mother delighted in reading Ladybug Picnic to me, rarely stopping after a
single reading because I always begged for another. Years later, when my husband and I built our home, an abundance of
ladybugs appeared as we settled in. Their unexpected arrival felt less like coincidence than a gentle welcome—a quiet blessing
on a new beginning.
Butterflies carry memories of my mother as well. They were her favorite, and creating artwork inspired by their graceful
transformation became one of the many ways I celebrated her throughout her life. Dragonflies have always occupied a place
somewhere between nature and imagination, appearing and disappearing with such effortless speed that they seem almost
otherworldly. Bees continue to embody the perseverance, cooperation, and purpose that I so deeply admire. The praying mantis,
a patient visitor on my front porch one summer, reminded me that stillness can reveal what haste conceals. Revered in many
cultures as a symbol of peace, contemplation, and insight, it became a quiet invitation to slow down and truly see.
Together these insects become more than subjects drawn from nature. They remind me that wonder is rarely found in the
extraordinary alone, but in the familiar moments we choose to notice. My hope is that each viewer discovers something uniquely
their own within these pages, carrying away not my interpretation of the natural world, but the one they find waiting for them.
Year: 2014
Medium: Mixed media artist's book
Structure: carousel
Materials: Archival papers, PVA adhesive
Dimensions: closed, 7” x 5” x .5” open, 7” x 10” x 10”
Edition: 10
Status: Private Collection
