Insect Music Miniatures

Insect Music I: Madame Butterfly, 4"x4", oil on copper (music by Giacomo Puccini)

Insect Music II: Flight of the Bumblebee, 4"x4", oil on copper (music by Rimsky-Korsakov)

Insect Music III: Papillons, 4"x4", oil on copper (music by Robert Schumann)

Insect Music IV: El Grillo, 4"x4", oil on copper (music by Josquin de Prez)

These painting are part of the current Miniature Show at the New Orleans Academy of Fine Art (through December 6). Each of my four miniatures for this show were painted on 4" square pieces of copper. It was a fascinating process, taking several months of planning and preparation. The copper was initially "cured" with garlic juice, then sanded, cleaned and glued to hardboard. Then followed many glazes of oil for a shimmering background for the music. Copying the music from the scores took another week, followed by days and days of more glazing and drying - then the fun part: finally getting to paint all the insects!