The Rival Queens

The Rival Queens By Julie Kwiatkowski Schuler.
 This will be my last post on this blog. You can follow my work on Instagram @mygoodbabushka

The Rival Queens

Work in progress.

The Rival Queens

Work in progress.

The Rival Queens

Work in progress today. Soon I will be posting painting updates to my Instagram, and giving this blog a rest, so if you like to follow these works, see them at @mygoodbabushka

He Cannot Get the Moon He Cries For.

He Cannot Get the Moon He Cries For. by Julie Kwiatkowski Schuler.
8" x 10" acrylic on heavy, acid-free paper. An anthropomorphized moth under the full moon. Inspired by the Victorian era illustrations depicting insects as anthropomorphized cherub-things. Lots of fairy tale charm.

He Cannot Get the Moon He Cries For

Work in progress. A little moth boy inspired by the Victorian era artwork of anthropomorphized insect cherub-things.

The Deathwatch Beetle

The deathwatch beetle is a woodboring insect. To attract mates, they create a tapping or ticking sound that can be heard in old buildings on quiet summer nights. They are therefore associated with quiet, sleepless nights and are named for the vigil kept beside the dying or dead, and by extension the superstitious have seen the death watch as an omen of impending death.
I wanted to take that idea and fold it into the Victorian artistic penchant for all things fairy-related. Often moths and insects were anthropomorphized and given cherubic faces in fairy-themed artworks.
Here are some sketches, working it out.