This piece was done ten years ago, yet I still remember just what I was thinking when I made it. Of course, I was recalling Brian Froud’s book of Fairies and Walter Linsenmaier’s book, Insects of the World, but I was also thinking about all of the children’s book illustrations and the tons of research on plants and animals I’ve also done along the way. One such book, Bullfrog at Magnolia Circle (Soundprints/Smithsonian) encouraged me to really dig into amphibian anatomy and all of the ways in which the frog’s skin is luminous and smooth.
This was the first image I did in which I combined my interest in the fantastic with my love for and expertise in science illustration. All of the plants and insects are “real” even if they’re stylized a bit— the horsetail, the duckweed, the water lilies, dobsonfly, and mayflies; the rest is fantasy.
Here you can see the early sketchbook idea and design. I made a few changes to the finial piece such as adding a loincloth to the main adult figure.
I also remember thinking of a few courses I took in ecological studies while I was an undergrad where learned about the fascinating “ephemerata” of streams. Lab/ field trips were great fun: wade into a stream, put out a net and kick over a few rocks. Try not to get knocked over by the current. Don’t touch any of the hairy vines on the trees.
A high variety and number of ephemerata means the stream is healthy and is providing a good ecosystem for many of the other species that live there and depend on it. These college courses turned me from being just another science illustrator into someone who deeply cares about the environment and the creatures that live within its niches.
There’s a bridge that spans the Susquehanna River between Columbia and Wrightsville PA, that when you drive over it on a certain week during the month of May, your car will be utterly splattered, covered, festooned, disgustingly sticky with Mayflies. There are millions of them.
And then they’re gone.
All of this was in my head when I was making this work. And just like these insects, thoughts are fleeting, nebulous unless they’re captured and wrestled down into some concrete form. The thoughts are embedded in the design and paint of the image.
Have more questions about this piece? Start a conversation by leaving a comment or question below— I’d love to hear your thoughts.