Ink on paper accordion book with 14 images and two popups
Artist Statement
My handmade book, “Migration Myths: Cross-Cultural Bird-Figures,” brings together fourteen drawings made after human-bird artworks from cultures around the world. These form a sequence of avian characters that convey our human connection to birds, dating from ancient times to the present day. Each figure emerges from a unique historical and symbolic context to join an expanding movement or procession that reminds us of the crucial importance of birds in our lives and imaginations.
The book’s imagery suggests stories and meanings familiar from religion and folklore, where wings signify spirit and the power of flight, people learn from birds, and creatures communicate beyond the human realm. The book was made from original ink drawings scanned and printed onto rice paper, then adhered to rag paper, accordion style. A second version includes color accents of collaged ornamental papers.
This project reveals the drawing and research process behind my ongoing sculpture series “Becoming a Bird,” mixed-media works made in wire and mesh plus repurposed bits of nature and culture. My work engages ideas around endangered species, the migration of birds and people, and our current psychic condition.