Ready For a Winter Sleep

This is a leaf I photographed to make carving templates during a backpacking trip in the Big Hole area of Montana. It usually snows on the last couple of days of the trip. I liked the character of the nibbled-on leaves. The time of viewing it and its beaten-up state made me acknowledge it's time for the leaf to go back to the earth as energy for the next leaf. The coming winter would be a big part of that breaking down process. The framing is screwed into the back of the Scagliola piece into a board cemented into the art. My frames are always unique to each piece because I use salvaged material to leave less waste in the world. The hanging hardware is made to support 100 pounds. The piece weighs 15 lbs. I learned this 16th-century plaster technique during my years of building restoration as a decorative artist. Now, because of arthritis, I use the techniques I learned as an architectural painter in smaller, more manageable forms to satisfy my passion for creating and healing and bringing a piece of art to your home or business.