Description

One of my more emotional pieces, this one features an archaeopteryx pierced in the heart by the needle of grief, and tangled in the threads that prevent it from flying. I chose to represent grief in this way because when grief initially strikes us, it is sharp, painful and seemingly so overwhelming. It is hard to think of a time moving forward where it will not hold you down. However, a needle and thread are light objects, and these things won’t hold you down forever. There is hope that your emotions will untangle, and the pain will dull with time.

I worked on this idea off and on for about 7-8 months, really struggling with exactly how I wanted it to look, and what mediums I thought would work. At one point, I considered hand embroidering the whole thing! It gave me trouble the entire time, but now that I’ve worked it out and finished it, I really love how it came out.

Originally drawn with pen and marker with a watercolor background on mixed media paper.