Special Materials Birds for Sale
Special Materials Birds include those covered with rose petals, bald-faced hornet nest fiber, and cicada wings. They will be available through the Smithsonian Craft Show online on Bidsquare.com this October 23-31. Any that do not sell in that show will be put back on this site in early November.
Recycled bird covered with layered found bald-faced hornet nest material and reused metallic wrapping tissue; reclaimed steel legs from deconstructed sculpture.
Like birds, bald-faced hornets build homes that echo the resources of their immediate surroundings, chewing bark from nearby trees to make their nests They build the layered walls in small strips of colored pulp that reflect the varied barks. These birds are a call to respect the intricate balance we all rely on to survive.
I collect empty nests when they are blown out of trees. The paper-like material is fragile and water repellent, making it fairly tricky to work with, but the results are so subtle and beautiful, I can't resist.
Recycled bird with outer covering of found bald-faced hornet nest and metallic wrapping tissue; bird body made from reclaimed materials (cardboard, postcards, packing newsprint); legs made from reclaimed wire from spiral notebook; mounted on a found grater.
Like birds, bald-faced hornets build homes that echo the resources of their immediate surroundings, chewing bark from nearby trees to make their nests They build the layered walls in small strips of colored pulp that reflect the varied barks. These birds are a call to respect the intricate balance we all rely on to survive. A portion of the sale of this bird will be donated to the Rock Creek Conservancy (https://www.rockcreekconservancy.org).
I collect empty nests when they are blown out of trees. The paper-like material is fragile and water repellent, making it fairly tricky to work with, but the results are so subtle and beautiful, I can't resist.
WEIGHT AND DIMENSIONS:
4.95 oz; 9"H x 4"W x 3"D
This recycled bird has an outer covering of cicada wings collected from Brood X, which emerged in the summer of 2021, with an added overlay of strong and translucent used abaca tea bag paper; feet made from reclaimed wire from a spiral notebook. I have a nice stash of the wings, so I plan to make more in this series, but it is slow going, since the hydrophobic wings need the tea bag overlay to stay put. Thanks to James Rogers for the Bird X name!
Bird made from reused paper materials covered with reused metallic tissue paper and found bald-faced hornet (paper wasp) nest material.