Once upon a time, there were three wood nymphs who lived in the forest and hid out among the moss and the toadstools. They were friends with all the woodland creatures, from fireflies to foxes and butterflies to bunnies.
They were so grateful for the abundance that surrounded them and would spend their time marveling at how dense and mysterious the forest was, how beautifully the light dappled the dark, and how reliable the symbiosis of the self-sustaining ecosystem seemed to be.
Then, the nymphs noticed some trouble in the forest. The diversity of the species seemed to be dwindling. The flora wasn’t as healthy or as plentiful. Disease and decay started to spread. The water table was receding and things were drying out. The trees the nymphs called home seemed to be disappearing in massive quantities, felled by humans and their merciless machines. The air quality was suffering. Their precious, spongy forest floor was being replaced with concrete at an alarmingly unsustainable rate.
Animals were confused and fleeing into unsafe and foreign territories. Then, the fires came. More fires than they had ever seen before. The fires were hotter, spread faster, and were more relentless as they spared nothing in their paths.
The nymphs know trouble is afoot and they are trying so hard to sound the alarm so humans understand how dire the circumstances are; because once you reach the tipping point and too much of the natural world has been destroyed, there is no going back. The time has come to pay attention to the nymphs!
As I created this piece, my heart couldn’t help but break over the devastating loss of both land and life on the west coast of the USA. This piece is a tribute to those who are living through this nightmare as well as the firefighters who are putting their own lives on the line to try to get things under control.
Here is how I made it:
· I found the bark earlier this summer. We had some biblical rains in July and lots of trees in the area didn’t survive the storms. I found this piece on a walk and knew I wanted to honor the tree by incorporating it into my artwork.
· I gathered an assortment of materials: basalt blanks from www.sandraevertson.com (not currently in stock), silk florals and leaves, wooden butterfly buttons, metal stars and lotus flowers (which I coated in VerDay paint), a chipboard word, and I used Sandra’s Wingspan Art Foamie stamp to make the multi-colored wings.
· To adhere all of the elements, I mixed up some Apoxie Sculpt and worked it into the nooks and crannies of the bark, attaching all of the 3D pieces to it and letting it cure.
· I left the basalt busts in their natural state because I wanted them to look like stone and blend into their surroundings like the nymphs would.
My parting message to you during this month’s blog post: Take care of the environment. Conserve. Reuse. Recycle. Don’t litter. Respect all land masses and bodies of water. And, don’t take any of it for granted. We don’t have a Planet B—this multi-colored marble is quite literally all we have. Let’s start taking care of Her, and of each other.
With prayers for the winds to subside and the rains to arrive on the west coast—
Thanks for reading,
Jenn
