A Rock Thrush in the Rose Garden

Watercolor & 24-ct gold leaf on paper, 22 x 22 cm, SOLD!

This is part of a series inspired by the idea of an ancient garden that is still beautiful—here is found the Rock Thrush. Seeing Venice and Florence and the gardens of Fiesole in Italy some years ago was very influential in my work. I was stunned by the beauty of these places. The memory was intensified by visiting Istanbul, Turkey. The architecture, tilework, and textiles there made a deep impression on me, and fostered my obvious love of Islamic miniature paintings. Persian miniatures often portray the idea of the paradise garden. The colors in them are so rich and intense. I would love to study them more and one day visit Iran. A Byzantine arch and the calm symmetry of the architecture in this painting frame a slightly chaotic garden now run wild. I love this combination of contrasts.

Curator’s Notes: One of the ‘arts of the book,’ miniature was coined by art historians to describe paintings in medieval and early modern manuscripts (as opposed to free-standing paintings) created by both Eastern and Western cultures.

Byzantine is the term historians use to refer to the civilization centered in Constantinople (today’s Istanbul) that considered itself the ‘New Rome.’ Founded in 330 by Roman Emperor Constantine I, the empire lasted until Constantinople was finally conquered by the Ottoman Turks in 1453.

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