It is confession time. When the butterfly was tightened, all put together and inserted into the stand, I stood back to see how it looked. I was confounded to feel an emotional tug and a smile. Suddenly it looked totally different all in one piece and what a pleasant surprise! It's interesting to experience how painting on the seperate pieces these past few weeks was just the preamble to the final stage.

Now, it is time to take the "Musical Butterfly" to the painting store where it will be coated professionally. Again, figuring out how to transport it took some patience and only one scratch (of which I was very pleased). I wonder how the sponsoring organization Imagination Celebration will respond, as well as the our community.

The photographs were taken in my studio, which was a bit of a juggling act because 3D pieces are always a challenge to photo. I had to go up into my loft office to get the photograph from above.

The butterfly is officially launched and out of my hands. Soon 25 butterflies will be places throughout Colorado Springs and then auctioned in September at a gala event. The procedes will benefit the local school art departments. I cannot wait to see the other butterflies!
 

All the pieces of my "Musical Butterfly: America the Beautiful" of 30lbs are ready for assembling! What do I need to put it all together? I had to study all of the nuts and bolts that I was given. This led me to realize that I needed a couple of regular wrenches as well as a ratchet wrench. Did you know that 7/16" and 5/8" wrenches were required?  Fortunately, I love tools and have mechanical & carpentry skills, so figuring out what I needed was not difficult. I feel for those artists who did not know they needed these tools to assemble their butterflies.

Because of the weight and odd angles of the pieces, I solicited help from my husband, but first we strategizef just how to line everything up to minimize scratches or dings. It took some patience and a few deep breahs, but we managed to got all of the bolts (10), washers and nuts alligned and tighted.

Notice that funny looking green piece of metal in the photograph? That is the bracket that will attach inside or on the top side of the butterfly. I will have to match up my design with this piece and then paint the notes and other things that will be covered up by the bracket.  I am not looking forward to this because of the angle and the awkward access to do the painting. Wish me luck!

The butterfly will be done soon and ready to launch!

Do you see the lyre? The lyre is frequently used as a musical symbol, such as in chair backs and music stands. In the spirit of the musical theme of this butterfly, I decided to use the idea of the lyre as the back or support of the butterfly.

In this photograph, you will notice that the green music notations are visible in only one of the wings. The top wing's are not visible because I have not removed the frisket that I mentioned before. The lower wing obviously shows that the frisket is removed. I will now paint the green again to make it more vibrant.

...to be continued.

Drum roll ~~~~~~~ Here is the top side of the butterfly finished!

I have entitled it "Musical Butterfly: America the Beautiful."  Let me explain. My first objective with the design of the butterfly, was to create a whimiscal feeling. The other initial decision I made was to use the butterfly as a 'canvas' versus to paint an actual butterfly. Then I thought of this geographical region over which Pikes Peak proudly stands and how it inspired the words to the song "America the Beautiful." (Katharine Lee Bates, instructor at Wellsley College, MA wrote the poem in 1893, after her inspiring trip to Pikes Peak). The notes on the butterfly are the first notes of the song and a playful road leads you over the hills to Pikes Peak.

Combining art with music is something I have done throughout my art career. They seem to go together naturally and I wanted people to have a sense of joy when they look at this musical butterfly.

And what will the reverse side look like?

...to be continued.

In this photograph, I want to show you the second layer of acrylic paint I have applied to the underside of the butterfly. This layer covers any of the frisket that I applied previously. I continue to learn about acrylic and how to best to apply it. It has never been a favorite medium of mine, though it is good to know more about and get a better feel for its characteristics. Its fast drying time continues to challenge me.

So how will I finish this side of the butterfly?

...to be continued.

Do butterflies have back and fronts or is it tops and bottoms? I suppose it is not all that important, but I seem to be getting tongue tied as I try to explain to people what part of the butterfly I am painting. Let's suffice it to say, that I have turned it over and I am doing the reverse side!

It is not a simple matter to just flip these heavy pieces over and start painting. The side that is already painted is fragile, which means that I have to move them gingerly so that my paint does not rub off or get scratched or pick up some unwanted particle. I decided that it would not be wise to place the painted side down on plastic, fearing that the plastic sheet would stick to the wings. Therefore, I retrieved large pieces of glassine paper to put down over the plastic and then laid the wings on the glassine. (Glassine is a wax-like paper that is used when I am storing or shipping my original paintings because is does not stick nor remove any media I use. It is cheap and great stuff!)

As you can see in the photograph, I have painted the first layers of the underside of the wing. I have learned through painting this project, that it takes 3 layers of paint before the color truly holds its saturation.

The swatches of green color are painted down first because this is where I will paint more musical notes and notations. Acrylic is known to be an opague paint, but in reality each layer effects the next layer. In other words, I cannot paint a bright lime green on top of a medium valued purple and expect the lime green to "shine." After the green paint dries, I then use frisket, which is a liquic rubber substance that dries, to preserve the green color in the shapes I want. After I have painted the purple edges, I will remove the frisket and paint the green again. You will see what I mean in later posts. Ahhh, the tricks of the trade!

...to be continued.

..It's a Butterfly! The other day, I picked up the stand that will hold my 30lb butterfly. I almost did not get it, because I was not required to do so, but having it in my studio has facilitated my understanding of how the piece will fit together. The funny looking shape at the top of the stand is the "body" of the butterfly. The black dots you see are holes for the bolts that will attach the two wings. I will need to paint this little body to integrate it with the wings. Though you cannot tell here, the body piece slides up and out of the black metal pole.

Sure does look tiny for the support of the butterfly, does it not?  

One of the many questions that periodically creeps up into my mind, is how many people will I need to attach the two wings with the body? Each bolt goes through each of the three pieces. Subtext to the question is how to do I do this with no scraping or damage to the painted surfaces??   ...and then I have to deliver it.

Whew! I have the fist layers of paint applied to my 30lb metal butterfly!
 
It's taken a little more effort than I thought it would. Fortunately, it is beginning to take on the musical - whimisical feel that I want to portray. Hopefully, you can sense it as well...??

Due to some struggling & frustrations, I have had to ask myself again, why did I want to participate in the Butterfly & Friends Project? 1) To make a contribution to the Colorado Springs schools' art departments, 2) to interact with more artists in this area, and 3) to stretch myself artistically! Oh, yes, it is good to post the reminder because I have had moments when I have wanted to toss in the brushes. This project is definitely stretching me!

As I have mentioned, acrylic is not a medium I know well. Consequently, I have had to do a fair amount of experimenting to determine the best way to apply paint and how many layers I need to apply. I have also had to get a feel for the quickness in which the paint dries, which is much faster than what I am accustomed to. There is a small piece of metal that connects the butterfly wings and that is what I have experimented on. (Sorry, no photos of that messy piece. I have since sanded it.)

Because of the weight of the wings and odd shape, I had no choice but to lay it down on a counter top in my studio. Here you can see that I them on a plastic sheet, while using a paper plate palette and cottage cheese containers for mixing and holding paint. My old watercolor brushes saved the day for applying the paint.

Unfortunately, my studio mate, Paynter, has been banned from the studio during the painting process. I fear that he will "explore" the wings at an inappropriate time. His bed is located on the same counter top.  Poor guy, he misses overseeing my progress and I miss his supervision. 

One does not always know from where "approval" can emerge! Paynter, the ever curious and intense orange cat, is a regular in my studio. Sometimes he even paws at my legs and meows to get me to stop when he thinks I have been working too long! Invariably, he is correct, and we stop for some coffee and lap time. It's nice having a warm furry buddy looking after me.

Back to the 30lb aluminum alloy butterfly. I had to problem solve how I was going to transfer the tracing paper drawing to the metal surface. Pencil seemed too harsh and from my tests, did not look like it was going to dissolve in the paint as I painted. I was concerned that the lines would show through the paint layers. Pastel pencil seemed to be the answer. I had never tried this before, but I rubbed it on the back of the tracing using the broad side of the pastel pencil. After I had the tracing lines covered with my light gray pastel pencil on the back side, I then gently placed the paper onto the butterfly, used a weight to anchor the paper, and then re-drew the tracings. It worked well!

What would you have done instead to transfer the drawing onto the butterfly?

One of the reasons I wanted to participate in the Butterflies & Friends Project sponsored by Imagination Celebration, was to stretch myself artistically. It seems that my "wish" has come true. My first hurdle was to enlarge my colored pencil design onto tracing paper large enough to cover a 40"x36" butterfly. Then I had to figure out how to transfer the design onto the butterfly, which does not lay flat.

The photograph shows you the tracing paper upon which I have drawn my design. The double wing is of the design for inside or the top of the butterfy and single wing drawing shows the underneath part of the butterfly. They look dirty because tracing paper smudges pencil quite easily. I also had to make some drawing changes because the 8"x11" template that we were given to design upon does not exactly correspond to the actual configuation of the metal butterfly. Ar-r-rgh.......but manageable.

Now, what art material am I going to use to actually transfer these drawings onto the real butterfly? Do you see a theme for this butterfly?

As mentioned in an earlier blog post, I am engaged in my first public works art project, and it is for the city of Colorado Springs. 24 artists' designs were chosen from 50 applications! Imagination Celebration has sponsored this event along with the Colorado Springs Rotary Club. The butterflies will be on display throughout town this summer and then auctioned off. The procedes will benefit the art departments of the local schools.

A couple of days ago I went to the metal shop to pick up my alluminum alloy butterfly, weighing in at 30lbs. Now I am comfronted with reality. How do I translate my 8"x11" colored pencil design onto metal using paints I have never used before? I have always said that challenges are good, and I think I have one here that will push me. Since this the second year for this fund raising event, perhaps it would be smart of me to contact an artist with metal butterfly experience?  It will also be necessary to figure out how to actually set the wings (36" wing span and they will be bolted together) up to paint them. Hmmmmmmm.....

How do you respond to those big wings you see in the photograph?

To be continued. The evolution of this butterfly will be posted as I tackle each stage. Wish me luck!

I just found out that my application to participate in the Colorado Springs "2nd Annual Butterflies and Friends" project was accepted! This event demonstrates the creativity of regional artists and raises awareness about the critical importance of childhood participation in art. Each artist transforms a 42" tall by 56" wingspan aluminum alloy butterfly that weighs 50 pounds and will be mounted on a 30 pound base. Entries are to be completed by June 15th.

The butterflies will be placed on display in outdoor locations for public viewing and interaction throughout the summer. This is a community collaboration with The Rotary Club of Colorado Springs and Imagination Celebration. Butterflies will be auctioned with 10% going to the artist and 90% to support school arts programs in the Colorado Springs school district D-11.

My entry is entitled "Musical Butterfly, " and I will keep you posted on its development. I am thrilled to be a part of this project.