With his yin-and-yang feathers, the magpie is the living embodiment of that most fundamental of truths…our world is full of light and shade. Just in case you had forgotten this, you will see it represented in the leaves right above his head, in the dark clouds and light in the sky…yet which of these is more beautiful? Hard to say because how would one make itself known without the contrast of the other (that truth known to all artists)? In the irridescent blue-green of his wings, I see just a hint of the overiding principle that knows all this…and in the dazzle-white of his chest the ultimate purity of intention that fuels it all.
Chock-full of metaphor, my well-poised magpie is a reminder to us all but most of all to me. No surprise, this artwork took much longer than any of my other birds since it proved quite a challenge to get its colour and tone values balanced to my ultimate and most-exacting satisfaction…such is life!
Prints are available in my Print Shop HERE.