ProletariART 2015: Making The Butterflies

The opening event for ProletariART is TONIGHT! So, I thought I’d tell you a bit about the artwork I submitted for the show, and how I made it.

I wasn’t sure what I wanted to create for ProletariART, but because of a butterfly-related project I was working on for a friend, I had butterflies on the brain. And then I remembered: I have a shadowbox. The two thoughts came together in my mind and got married and gave birth to an idea. Why not do a butterfly display in a shadowbox, but with my artwork instead of real butterflies? Terrific idea!

So, I got to work. First, I sketched out some butterfly shapes on bristol paper. I wanted a lot of them, and I varied the sizes a bit.

Butterflies for ProletariART - sketches
Butterflies for ProletariART – sketches

Then, I inked the butterflies to emphasize their outlines and give them a unified look.

Butterflies for ProletariART - outlines
Butterflies for ProletariART – outlines

Then I Soulprinted them! I brought out all the colored pens I had and went to town until they were all filled with colored Soulprinting. There’s even some silver in there!

Butterflies for ProletariART - closeup
Butterflies for ProletariART – closeup
Butterflies for ProletariART - closeup
Butterflies for ProletariART – closeup

The next step was cutting them out, but I forgot to snap a photo of that stage. Just imagine scissors and paper bits and grooves in my fingers from the scissor handles. :p Once they were cut out, I pinned them onto the shadowbox backing.

Butterflies for ProletariART - assembly
Butterflies for ProletariART – assembly
Butterflies for ProletariART - assembly
Butterflies for ProletariART – assembly

They’re floating!

Butterflies for ProletariART - assembly
Butterflies for ProletariART – assembly

I put the butterflies in the shadowbox frame and voilĂ , they were done!

"A Change of Art" - Complete butterfly shadowbox
“A Change of Art” – Complete butterfly shadowbox

I call this piece A Change of Art. It’s on display at ProletariART, starting TONIGHT!

ProletariART is a yearly community art exhibition at Cape Breton University. Opening night is tonight (30 January 2015) from 6-8pm, and the art will remain on the walls during regular gallery hours until 27 February 2015.

I’ll be at the opening tonight. I hope to see you there!