I am excited to debut a new body of work in Spectrum, a group show at Andra Norris Gallery showcasing a kaleidoscope of color! Rooted in my Birds and Teacups paintings, this new series features birds and teacups but ensconced in a curiosity cabinet filled with specimens, artifacts, collectables and kitsch – all laced together with an underlying narrative of courtship, obsession, life and death.

Steller's Jays are very intelligent birds and are known for their great caching skills. Here, this pair has made their home on top of a blue Empire style cabinet that they have filled with acorns, their primary food source, in and around the blue flow china including a few Staffordshire dog figurines guarding the treasure trove. Blue flow china was created during the Regency Era in Staffordshire England in an attempt to replicate the much prized Chinese and Japanese pottery. However, potters had trouble figuring out the right formula, the cobalt blue that they used would run, a failure which became the desirable blue flow pottery we are familiar with. I have filled the shelves with a variety of blue flow pottery and more including specimens from which we procure blues, the indigo plant, lapis lazuli, and a hunk of cobalt dotted rock. The dogwood flowers symbolize love's resilience in the face of life's changes and is included to highlight the jays and loop back to the dogs. Often giving shiny gifts to each other, I have this pair of Jays sharing the key to the cabinet.