This month’s featured print is Blueberry Pancakes—a tribute to comfort, ritual, and the kind of quiet morning we all dream of, especially mothers.
Originally painted for the Monthly Miniatures, Creature Comfort series in May, this piece was my version of the perfect Mother’s Day breakfast: pancakes stacked high with melting butter, a rich latte in a Blue Willow cup, and a single iris in an antique hand vase.
The composition echoes the Dutch still life tradition, but with a distinctly contemporary touch. It’s about everyday beauty—something made by hand, savored slowly, and shared with love.
Fine art prints of this piece are now available in the shop. Printed on archival paper, signed, and ready to ship.
Order by Tuesday, May 7th for Mother’s Day delivery.
Chasing Color is a new series of miniature paintings that explores how a single hue can influence mood, memory, and meaning. Each piece centers around one dominant color, building a world from fruits, florals, porcelain, and wildlife. The technique is classical, inspired by Dutch Golden Age still life, but the stories are personal—drawn from my life, home, and history.
This first painting is a meditation on red: bold, passionate, and deeply rooted in memory.
A Cardinal’s Comfort
The cardinal has always meant “home” to me. Growing up in the Midwest, they were a familiar flash of color in winter trees, and even now, seeing one feels like a kind of homecoming. In this painting, the bird perches on a porcelain bowl inspired by an 18th-century Chinese piece from The Met. Its deep Sang de Boeuf glaze mirrors the cardinal’s feathers and also nods to my former life as a mountmaker at the Seattle Art Museum, where I spent 14 years working with pieces like this.
From My Garden
The other elements are more grounded—literally. Every fruit and flower came from my own garden. The cherries were from my tree’s final season; it died not long after, but not before gifting me the biggest harvest I’d ever had. I took dozens of reference photos (and baked two pies!) from that one harvest. Since cherries are often symbols of paradise, maybe it’s time I plant another.
A painted lady butterfly, emblem of transformation, rests on a leaf. We’ve raised and released three rounds of these butterflies from tiny caterpillars—it’s a magical process, and one I love sharing with my kids. The strawberries? Let’s just say I believe every garden should have them. Homegrown strawberries taste like a completely different fruit than the store bought variety.
Generational Threads
And then there’s the poppy. My grandfather, who emigrated from Romania in the 1920s, loved poppies. My dad grew them in remembrance of him, and now I grow them for my dad. It’s a small tradition, but a meaningful one—and one that made its way into this painting.
It’s incredible how much can be packed into a 5 x 5″ space. Even a single strawberry can carry a story.
This piece, In the Company of Red, is now on its way to its new home in San Francisco. I hope it brings a little warmth, a little memory, and maybe a spark of connection to its new home.
This month’s monthly miniature marks the welcome return of my pear harvest—and the chance to feature one of my favorite fruits in a painting once again. For years, our tree produced more pears than we knew what to do with, sometimes into the thousands. But after several seasons of low yields, I was thrilled to gather around 200 this fall. It felt like reconnecting with an old friend.
I originally planned to paint a western tiger swallowtail I spotted on a fallen pear in the garden, but as I started working on the composition, I swapped it for an emerald swallowtail. The striking green tones of the emerald suited the palette I had in mind, allowing for a nearly monochromatic background with subtle hits of red and orange. Though the butterfly is native to Southeast Asia, but it’s a popular species in butterfly houses around the world so you may have seen them anywhere you call home.
A Shift in Mood
The creative process behind this piece took an unusual turn for me. I began with a pale cream background—an approach more reminiscent of the sparse still lifes of Jan van Kessel. But halfway through painting, I realized it wasn’t offering the mood I was after. So, I made a rare decision to change direction. I repainted the background dark and added a stone table inspired directly by one of Adriaen Coorte’s compositions. The result is a richer, moodier setting that feels more grounded and contemplative.
This kind of mid-course correction is rare in my practice—because my paintings are so detailed, I typically finalize the composition before I begin painting. But in this case, the shift felt essential.
From the Studio
Getting this piece finished in time was no small feat. My youngest is starting to walk, we just wrapped up my show at Harris Harvey Gallery, and our home is in full project mode. Life feels full to the brim—but I wouldn’t have it any other way. 💚
I’m thrilled to share that I will have paintings on view at Harris Harvey Gallery from September 5 – 28, 2024. I’ve been working on getting ready for the show for a while and it’s wonderful to finally see it come together. Please go the gallery website to see what is still available.
Artist Statement about the Paintings on View
I paint objects of intimate familiarity—fruits and florals from my garden, objects handled in my time as a mount maker for Seattle Art Museum—in compositions inspired by the Dutch Golden Age. Much as the Dutch masters would compose seasonal impossibilities, I bring together inspirations separated by time, space and tradition. My work is a reach for a childhood of birds’ nests and frogs, a longing to grasp that wonderment yet reconcile with isolation and loss. It is a meditation on the comings and goings of life, the closeness and distance to kin of all kinds.
Western Tiger Swallowtail and Parrot Tulip, oil on copper, 5.5 x 4.5″Broken Tulip and Bee, oil on copper, 6.5 x 5.5 inAsian Pears and Peaches on Lacquer Tray, oil on copper, 20 x 24 inPlums and Swallowtails, oil on copper, 16 x 20 inFigs and Cheese with Celadon Dragon Vase, oil on aluminum, 10 x 8 inFour Tulips and a Yellow Rose, oil on aluminum, 14 x 11 inMum, Butterfly and the Spider, oil on aluminum, 17 x 12 inSpider Mum, Bee and Snail, oil on aluminum, 17 x 12 inBlackberries and the Indigo Bunting, oil on copper, 12 x 12 inYellow Tulip and Monarch Butterfly, oil on aluminum, 7 x 6 inFiji Papilio Swallowtail, oil on copper, 4.5 x 5.5 inThe artist in the studio with her two sons
After a brief hiatus to welcome our newest family member, I’m thrilled to be painting again. I had optimistically hoped for pockets of studio time during those first three months with Elliot, but between the sleepless nights and an unfinished kitchen remodel, painting just wasn’t in the cards. These days, I paint when the baby nap and I’m reminded how good it feels to be back at the easel.
A Remarkable Discovery
This new piece features the Fiji Papilio swallowtail, a butterfly with a story as striking as its wings. Native to the island of Vanua Levu, this brilliantly patterned butterfly somehow managed to escape scientific recognition until just a few years ago—a fact that still astonishes researchers.
The butterfly was first photographed in 2017 by ornithologist Gregg Kerr, who was in Fiji as an instructor with Operation Wallacea, a foundation that supports student-led scientific expeditions. Though birds were his focus, Kerr noticed and documented a butterfly so unusual that when he shared the images, some experts suspected a hoax.
Naming the Natewa Swallowtail
The mystery caught the attention of the Swallowtail and Birdwing Butterfly Trust, which dispatched entomologists John Tennent and Richard Markham to investigate. Their fieldwork led to the formal identification and classification of the new species, which they named the Natewa Swallowtail.
Though Tennent has described over 100 new species and subspecies of butterflies in his career, he called this one “easily the most spectacular.” As he put it, “For such an unusual and large new butterfly to be discovered somewhere we thought was so well known is remarkable.”
Painting the Wonder
It’s always a privilege to paint something with such natural beauty—and even more so when its backstory is filled with wonder. This swallowtail is a reminder of how there are still remarkable discoveries to be made, waiting just off the path.
When I started my monthly miniature Swallowtail series, I warned you that they come in many sizes and shapes, but this one is quite exceptional. The Teinopalpus imperialis is a rare species which can be found fluttering in patches across the Himalayas, through Nepal and north India all the way east to north Vietnam. That’s far from home for me, but part of the fun of this series is to use all of the many tools available to me to stretch my imagination across the globe, even if visiting the Himalayas physically is impossible for me right now.
My Emperor of India is portrayed as more of a natural history specimen than as a creature that just settled down for a nibble or a rest. He is also displayed in verso, with his tummy face up (see his little feet?) so that the most vibrant coloration of his wings are in full view. I went for a full-on manuscript-inspired composition with the addition of a golden arch around this butterfly. My inspiration was Joris Hoefnagel, one of the early pioneers in still life paintings and the study of insects. It’s easy to see how still life paintings caught on with such fervor when viewing his iconic masterpieces created in the 1500’s.
I love how my monthly miniature series gives me so much freedom to experiment while staying within the boundaries of just a few simple ideas. Within the concept of “swallowtail butterflies,” I experiment with compositional ideas within the same general theme and format. Looking back over all the paintings I completed over the year, I get ideas and inspiration for the next series of paintings. I also get ideas for works I exhibit in galleries.
On a personal note…
Hope you’re doing well and I please wish me luck for the next couple of weeks! Baby is due in a week and we don’t have anything ready! We almost have a countertop in the kitchen so fingers crossed it’s not still a complete madhouse when the baby gets here. As you can imagine, I’m exhausted! I have a set up to put my feet up while I’m painting, which means studio-time is also “resting-time”. I’ve thankfully been able to get a little painting done and I’m saving most of the the kitchen construction for my wonderful husband, friends and family.
Forget Me Not, oil on copper, 4.5″ x 5.5″, is the newest addition to my Swallowtail Series—a body of miniature still life paintings inspired by centuries of natural observation and artistic devotion.
This piece is an homage to two 17th-century painters I admire deeply: Jan van Kessel the Elder and Margaretha de Heer. Though I’ve long been a fan of van Kessel’s work, I only recently discovered de Heer. This painting is a celebration of their shared legacy—and a reflection on the way artists learn through looking, studying, and paying tribute.
Two Artists, One Era: Shared Roots in Still Life
Jan van Kessel and Margaretha de Heer were born roughly 20 years apart and just a few hundred miles from each other—van Kessel in Antwerp, Belgium, and de Heer in Friesland, in what is now the Netherlands. Both were born into artist families, and both became known for their vivid depictions of the natural world.
While each created genre scenes and other subjects, it’s their still life work that has most captivated me. Their paintings, often categorized as nature studies, depict insects, flowers, fruits, and other organic forms with striking clarity.
Stylistic Differences: Density vs. Balance
Jan van Kessel the Elde, via Wikimedia Commonsr, Public DomainBy Margareta de Heer – scanned from book by Laurens J. Bol, “Bekoring van het kleine”, plate 7, Public Domain
Van Kessel’s work bursts with detail—his compositions packed edge-to-edge with butterflies, beetles, shells, and blossoms. The perspective often shifts, with elements floating freely or perched on undefined surfaces. You get the sense that couldn’t bear to leave any space unused. There’s a beauty in the chaos, and despite the density, his compositions achieve a remarkable balance. The irregular perspectives feel surprisingly contemporary, not disruptive—just part of the visual rhythm.
De Heer’s paintings, while similar in subject matter, evoke a different tone. Her compositions are more spacious and deliberate. She embraces negative space, organizing her elements with a grounded sense of perspective and a graceful visual flow. Her approach feels more lyrical than scientific—a quiet reflection on the beauty of nature rather than a full catalogue of it.
The Butterfly: A Marvel from Central Africa
The butterfly in Forget Me Not is a Blue-banded Swallowtail (Papilio nireus), a striking species native to central and southern Africa. With velvet-black wings and bold, iridescent blue bands, this butterfly commands attention. Though it lacks the tail streamers typical of many swallowtails, it does belong to the Papilionidae (often refered to as Swallowtail) family and is admired for its swift flight and elegance.
Finding My Place in the Tradition
One of the great joys of working in the still life tradition is learning from the artists who came before me. By studying and incorporating their approaches, I find new ways to think about composition, subject matter, and symbolism. Forget Me Not is undeniably informed by van Kessel and de Heer, but it’s also undeniably mine. It’s a meditation on legacy, observation, and the quiet power of paying attention.
For the month of April, I have made a botanical painting with swallowtail butterflies. The two lovely butterflies in my new painting look like completely different species, but they are in fact both Papilio lowis (Asian Swallowtails). The great difference in appearance is present in the male and the female of this species, which is called sexual dimorphism. Often the male has brighter colors to attract the females’ attention, like this dark butterfly with iridescent blue/green scales; the males are also smaller.
Scientists attribute this to differing pressures on the sexes, but the reasons for dimorphism seem to be as diverse as the species themselves! In the case of this pair, the females mimic a type of poisonous butterfly, discouraging predators. The males meanwhile kept their brilliant iridescent colors, which apparently the females find quite attractive.
Inspiration from Art History
The inspiration for the composition on my botanical painting and the background goes back to my 14 years installing artwork for the Seattle Art Museum. I installed countless Chinese and Japanese scroll paintings, and even went to Japan a few times as a courier to oversee the installation of various asian masterpieces for the exhibition, “Luminous Jewels”. One of my favorite scroll paintings in that exhibition was, “Sixty-Four Butterflies and Moths”. The mass of insects flutter evenly throughout the painting, each with its own label. While this painting didn’t directly influence the composition for my painting, the delicate rendering of the butterflies always stuck with me. Thinking of this painting helped set the direction of how this painting would develop.
I hope you’re enjoy this month’s painting, and I hope you’re beginning to enjoy some warmer weather. I’m looking forward to the season when I see more butterflies outside the studio than inside it! Follow my newsletter to see the new monthly miniature and for exhibition updates.
Once your Limited Edition Print arrives, it’s your turn to get creative. Whether your style is contemporary, traditional or anything in-between, there are many options. Choosing the right framing can feel intimidating, but try to enjoy the process and trust your instincts. Check out an article I recently wrote about framing limited edition prints. Continue reading for an in-depth look at one clients framing choices.
Audrey generously shared these wonderful images of her two framed Limited Edition Prints she recently ordered from my shop. I loved how they turned out and thought they could help inspire your own framing choices! If you’re in the Holywood, FL area, she recomends Nina’s Art and Framing.
What I love about Audrey’s framing
Framing idea from Audrey. (The frame opening is around 12″ x 12″)
I worked in a frame shop all through art school, and then at the Seattle Art Museum exhibition design department for 15 years. I got to see and hear from the experts on how and why framing should be done in certain ways. Audrey’s choices reflect some of these ideas, and I think describing how will help others make their own choices.
The Mat
The mat for a print serves two purposes: it can enhance the look of the artwork, and it protects the art.
The right mat helps draw the eye in and can add a bit of grandeur or drama to the overall presentation of your new artwork. Use a mat between 2″ and 4″ wide. As for color, I’ve always preferred a simple “white” mat. I feel that a white mat really brings attention to the artwork without any distractions. There are exceptions to this and that’s basically your personal taste and decorating style. If your house is overall more bold and colorful, then adding a pop of color in your mat might fit right in. I say try the white first, but ultimately, go with your gut.
And when I say “white” I mean the white that matches the color of the paper best. If you’re having your Limited Edition Print custom framed, don’t be surprised to have your framer pull out dozens of white mats to choose from!
As to the protective element of matting, keeping space between the Limited Edition Print and the glass is the main goal of the mat. A mat allows air circulation in this space and helps prevent mildew, mold, and buckling. It also keeps artwork from sticking to the glazing material and becoming damaged.
The Frame
The hardest choice of all is picking your frame. This is where your personal taste and creativity really come into play. I often choose narrow, simple frames for matted pieces, which is very different from how I frame my paintings. I’ve had several clients that framed their prints in this way, using a narrow, simple frame with really lovely results. This choice will be the part where you look at lots of different options, and trust your unique style and taste.
Contrary to what I would normaly choose, Audrey’s frame choice is not narrow or simple, but I love it! It’s unique and has a lot of personality without being overwhelming. It brings my eye into the images and the pattern and texture compliments the the images in a subtle and appealing way.
Best of luck in your own art hanging adventures! Feel free to reach out via Instagram, or the contact form here on my website, whether you have a question or something to share. I love to hear from my readers and collectors, and fellow art lovers!
The main subject for this years series of monthly miniatures will be my favorite kind of butterfly, the swallowtail. With over 550 different species, they appear in a vast array of colors, shapes and sizes and I will have no shortage of inspiration. For this painting, I chose the Pipeline Swallowtail. This butterfly is found in extensive areas of North America; in the United States, it’s mainly found in the south and southeast, plus an isolated pocket in central California.
I paired my swallowtail with thistle flowers, which are a favorite (of mine and of the butterfly). The flowers on a thistle stalk don’t usually bloom all at once, but I’ve taken some liberties. I was inspired by the compositions of the Dutch still life painter Jan van Kessel. Van Kessel worked in the mid 17th century, at the height of the golden age of Dutch still life painting. It was common practice during this time to create paintings that were seasonal impossibilities, pairing blooms that appear months apart in nature, or all of a plant’s blooms open at once, as I’ve done here. I wanted to create this simple moment, full of plenty for my butterfly. I love the contrast of a vibrant thistle in bloom. Thistles have the perfect pairing of soft flowers and spikey leaves and stems.
Some of you are squeamish about insects, and I hope you’ll indulge my love of these delicate creatures. Rest assured, I will be creating work for the gallery in the upcoming year, both with and without insects. 😉
After my crazy, overloaded 2022, I can’t tell you how happy I am to have this painting finished by the first week of January! I wish you a Happy New Year, full of deadlines met ahead of schedule.
