Meet my collaborator- the spotted dove perched up on the ceiling fan. For over a year she has carried twig after twig after twig into various rooms of my home, determined to build a nest here. I’ve been collecting each one and weaving them as a nest in a bamboo bird cage my spouse gifted on our wedding day.
But yesterday, when I picked up her latest finds, I became mesmerized by the striking simplicity of their form. They reminded me of my own curations from nature (I’ve been known to drag in branches and stumps and sculptures of thorns to decorate my spaces…even going through a phase of pinning wasp nests in my hair and once accidentally releasing dozens upon dozens of praying mantis hatchlings into my home).
Rather than tucking these twigs away, I decided to deconstruct the surrogate nest, piece by piece. So far I’ve made 30 pencil drawings on handmade bamboo paper. Emerging from the tangle were three downy feathers now floating in tiny corked jars I brought back from America last year. The dove watched from above, cocking her head with curiosity from time to time while I thought about so many things…like what it means to build a home…to build a dream…to have hope…and patience…to bring it all together one twig at a time.
I think this is only the beginning of our creative collaborations. 🕊️
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