INSECT CABINET III

Close-up views of the front doors of the cabinet:

I did my first drawing of a hawk moth acting like a Phoenix for an artist's book I made called "WAIT WAIT".  That image is inside the book which is usually tucked away on a shelf.  I love the visual concept so much that I decided to use it again on the cabinet doors where it would be seen more often.

Originally the breaking or flaming on the petals of  tulips was the result of a virus carried by an aphid.  The most famous of these early tulips was named Semper Augustus which appeared at the end of Tulipmania in Holland when crazy speculation in bulbs brought down their economy.  Today the effect is achieved by breeding and not disease.

The lily isn't really as appropriate as the tulip but it does have a wonderful grasping twist as if it is trying to hold onto the beautiful beast that is making an escape.

The band of butterflies beneath each main drawing has an almost subterranean look as if it were the ground itself holding onto the plants.