                      PAPER MACHE BIRDS

In crafting a bird I hope to inspire an awareness of birds, an awareness of nature. The species, size and pose of the bird is determined by the wire form I make with my fingers and needle-nose pliers. The armature is then covered with strips of paper dipped in glue to give the bird a skin. Colored papers and ephemera (sheet music, old letters, recipes) are glued to the skin, making the "feathers" that describe the bird's unique colors and markings.
Having birds in my feeders inspires me, having birds in my house makes me happy.

California Quail, 7" high x 10" long, $220  

Goldfinch, 4" high x 6" long, $125

Meadowlark, 10"tall x 10"long, $225

Marsh Wren, 4" tall x 6" long, $145

These fly away with some regularity. You may order your favorite species or inquire as to what's available.

House Finch, 4" high x 6" long, $125

California Scrub Jay, 7' high x 10" long, $185

Junco, 4" tall x 6" long, $125

Crow, 12" tall x 14" long,  $265

American Robin, 7" tall x 9" long, $ 165

Cardinal, 5" high x 7" long, $185

Chickadee, 4" high x 6" long, $125

Great Blue Heron, 16" tall x 16" long, $395

Wire armature for a rooster.   SOLD

                                  TORN AND CUT PAPER COLLAGE

After placing the drawing of my subject onto my watercolor block, I select my palette from the colored papers in my storage baskets and folders, mostly Lokta paper from Nepal and rice paper from Japan. I tear out and glue the largest shapes to the background first. As progressively smaller shapes are applied, the picture becomes less abstract. The application of the final details may require one small drop of glue and a crumb of paper applied with a toothpick ot tweezers: a white dot in the eye of a tiger. The glue I use is forgiving and pieces of paper can be "unglued" with the application of a little water if corrections are needed. Rubber stamp lettering is unforgiving and misspelling is a constant danger!  All collages are 12" x 16".

FOREST PORTRAITS/ Living next to the park, wildlife is never far away. These portraits celebrate the furry and the feathered in a series of torn paper collages. Rice paper makes nice fur. 

Fox Kits 

Racoons Kits

Fawns 

Owlets 

Fox

Racoon 

Deer

Owl

DOMESTIC CATS/ Friends supplied a good selection of photos. Torn paper collage with Lokta and rice paper. Backgrounds from my ephemera collection.

BIG CATS/ The back of each greeting card has a description of the cat's environment and lifestyle.

                      Lion                                             Tiger                                                   Leopard                                             Jaguar 

DOG BREEDS/ Numerous photos were consulted and combined to get the "best of breed".  I opened some mouths to get a friendlier look. 
The study of breed traits was distilled into a few sayings that descrtibe the characteristics of each dog. Torn paper with rubber stamp lettering.

ILLUSTRATED RECIPES/ It's great fun to integrate written recipes with pictures of their component parts. The composition has to be planned to accommodate the design and the lettering. Torn paper collage with torn and rubber stamp lettering.

CHOCOLATE DELIGHTS/ Eight ways to enjoy chocolate. Torn paper collage with torn paper and rubber stamp lettering. 3-D sprinkles on the cones.

THE BAKERY/ Suddenly everyone is baking...making sour dough starter and learning that English muffins aren't English and don't get baked in the oven. The house smells delicious. Torn and cut paper collage with watercolor and various seeds.

WINE AND COCKTAILS/ Each grape and leaf are rendered to represent the variety of grape used to make each wine.The shape of each glass is the connoisseur's choice of the best shape for the maximum flavor from that varietal. Jim LaMar, Editor of Professional Friends of Wine and teacher of viticulture at Cal State Fresno, edited my descriptors. Torn paper collage with watercolor and rubber stamp lettering.

TEA/ Researching the teas of the world, you learn about types, terroir, havesting and drying. Searching for teapots and flowers that relate to a specific tea is a treasure hunt in ceramic history and  world botany.  Torn paper collage with watercolor, hand torn and rubber stamped lettering.

BIRDS/ The seven most popular backyard species in the U.S. done up in decorative cut papers.

    JUNCO

   AMERICAN ROBIN

   BLUEBIRD

   CARDINAL

   ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD

   MOURNING DOVE

   CHICKADEES

MORE BIRDS/Scissor-cut birds and plants on light colored backgrounds surrounded by color.

    ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD

   CHESTNUT-BACKED CHICKADEES

     AMERICAN ROBINS

    AMERICAN GOLDFINCH

    DARK-EYED JUNCOS

BLUEBIRDS

    NORTHERN CARDINAL

WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW

SEED PACKS /Watercolor vegetables and flowers cut out and glued to a background. Watercolor collage with rubber stamp lettering.

OWLS/ The descriptors on the back of each greeting card tell of the owl's lifestyle. Torn paper collage.

BARN OWL

BARRED OWL

BOREAL OWL

GREAT HORNED OWL

CALIFORNIA ICONS / California Icons are cut paper collages. I used my best embroidery scissors to do the cutting, lettering included. The back of the cards have descriptions of the subjects and the dates that they became state symbols.

OAKLAND LANDMARKS/  I used my paper punch to make the greenery that unites this series of landmarks from my home town. Torn paper collage.