Hello, there! It has been a bit since writing here, as I have been completely absorbed in creating a brand-new body of small encaustic sculptures, “Metamorphosis”, to be released next week— yay! I have been posting daily on Instagram and Facebook about this new endeavor, but knowing some of you are not on social media and are the original lovely group to follow my work, I wanted to make sure you are included in the offering. I will be releasing the new collection of 33 pieces via email on Monday, November 25, 2019, to those on my EMAIL LIST— if you are not yet on that list (where all my studio updates and announcements will now be, with process-sharing and reflection remaining the focus of this blog) and you WANT TO BE INCLUDED IN THE EARLY RELEASE, please take quick moment to sign up here (click “here” to go straight to the sign-up form OR you can message me and I will add you). It will not be released to the public via social media until Friday, November 29, so this is a nice window for early preview and opportunity to purchase, if you so desire.

(**** This is an ONLINE SALE, ONLY, providing access to those down the road as easily as those across the globe— the amazing wonder of the world wide web ;)! ****.)

If you do not have accounts on FB or IG and would like to see more detail about what I’ve been up to, you may find me @michellehaydenartist on both Instagram.com and facebook.com (no account, necessary) and will see the chronological flow of this new work, as revealed a bit at a time, over the course of the last few weeks. If you would just like to view a few snippets of what I have been posting, see below :). All pieces stem from my photographs of moth or butterfly wings, and include small table-top sculptural beauties enclosed in glass and wall-hung meditative circles that cradle them in a variety of sizes. Inspired by the process of metamorphosis experienced by these amazing creatures, the Metamorphosis Series celebrates the life force called upon in each of us as we are challenged by change and seek the opportunity to become more fully alive.

Having lived inside the space of circles for 380 days with watercolor pigment, I was happy to revisit the circles with my encaustic sculptures and see how they might fill that space. Unlike the watercolors, whose middles were filled with the lines, shapes, and composites of my daily inner life, these white circles serve as open contemplative space in which to hold tender butterfly and moth embodiments, as the energy of their wings seemed to call for room to breathe. For me, the circle represents cycles of life, wholeness, and safe containment, while having boundaries that can expand on all sides, part of the bigger whole, although there are endless meanings for this primal shape. Having sanded, painted, drilled into, and delicately wired the encaustic-covered wings to a place of stability, it’s no wonder that I am noticing circles, everywhere, as I go about my day…

My fascination with these wondrous wings fill some of my earliest memories, breathlessly following their flight for hours through the fields that lay at the bottom of our hill (delighted when they stopped for a rest and joining them there), mesmerized by their effortless movement and flashing color. My favorite was the small periwinkle, so tiny and pale, plentiful where we lived. I am fortunate now to live out in nature, taking in their beauty as they feast on the butterfly weed and milk weed that grow on our hills, still in quiet awe as they flutter past. But I also find their wings lying on the ground, all that is left of their journey. I feel a sense of reverence at these times, reminded of the many stages in our lives and the inevitable process of change... As I collect their delicate structures in my hand and photograph them, I feel privileged, knowing I have the opportunity to bring a new kind of life to their wings.

When looking closely at the patterns found in such delicate, yet powerful, structures, I am pulled into an abundant range of glorious, striking patterns and soft subtleties of color gradation that lie within each form, tiny particles converging into brilliant displays of beauty and function. Some wings remind me of being inside a cathedral, peering up at glowing panes of luminous glass, separated by strong lead lines holding them in place… others, of floating in a quieter sea of flowing pigment with open sky, above. When I begin to carve through the thickly-layered encaustic medium to unearth what lies below, I am filled with the joy of exploration and discovery, taking much delight in the interpretation and communication of the hopeful energy that calls for release in that small space. That is one of the best parts of creating— the freedom to choose, with no right or wrong interpretation— only that which feels right in the heart and hand. My intention is that this liberation and joy, contemplation or reverie, is transmitted to you as you take in these pieces so that they connect to what you most need to see and experience. Art has such power to bring us to deeper places within ourselves and with each other and to allow us to experience stillness in that space— such gifts of being human…

I have received generous encouragement and engagement about this new series and feel so very grateful for the connections that continue to grow. Thank you for being part of my art community— knowing that my work brings meaning to you provides such empowering energy to continue making and sharing the work. It is very timely, as we celebrate the upcoming season, which I am fortunate to say, is abundantly filled with gratitude. Please reach out to me if you have any questions or inquiries about specific works, above, or the Metamorphosis Series, as a whole. I look forward to sharing the collection in just a matter of days!