Oh Papillon! Dedicated to My Mom

This sublime image is from flickr user MissKittyKat.

When I was a kid my mom had a tee shirt that was one of my favorites. It said "Oh, papillon!" and had butterflies all over it. My mother loved butterflies. Lately I have been seeing butterflies everywhere and they always make me think of her. My mother was a free-spirit at heart and to me the butterfly is the ultimate symbol of freedom.

This cute bowl is from Urban Outfitters. This would make a great Christmas present for my mom.But it wouldn't be enough. Perhaps she'd also like this Isaac Mizrahi bedding from Target.

And just leave it to Martha Stewart! Doesn't she just think of everything? A butterfly reath for the holiday season!

A search for butterflies at Etsy, revealed this print called "how i got my stutter" by Madelaine. I was instantly touched by this at once lovely, yet somber print. Here is a complicated soul, I thought, a real artist, perhaps deeply touched by the fact that butterflies are endangered. She said it better than I in her description: "... and i'm a sixteen-year-old self-representing artist specializing in artistic photography and digital art. I hope you enjoy my art, as each piece was a joy and tragedy to create - you'll find my metaphorical heart in each one."

Wow! You go, girl! Only 16 and so deep, I suspect that Madelaine is an old soul. Madelaine intuitively understands the purpose of art - to express the complexity that makes up a human being - the dichotomy between joy and tragedy.

It fascinated me to contemplate what the upside down butterfly about to get immersed in tea represents. Perhaps the burning desire to fly away thwarted? Perhaps the deep longing to be understood and to feel free to express uniqueness? Perhaps like my own mother who wanted to be a hippy but was saddled with great responsibility at too young an age. I think my mom would deeply feel this print, so perhaps this will be her Christmas present.

Madelaine, thanks for being an inspiration! Please promise me you will never stop creating and that you will never for one moment think that you are not an artist. You are.

Oops. This was meant to be a light-hearted ode to the butterfly and has taken on a new life. Much like the butterfly itself who is a master of metamorphosis.

Once, I called my love a butterfly. He asked me what color his wings were. Why purple, of course, I said. The thought of flying away together with those purple wings inspired this painting. I hope that this painting conveys wistfulness and freedom tempered with protection. Exactly what a butterfly deserves.

Big Purple Wings, 2005, 18" x 24", acrylic and marker on canvas