Title: Flower Child
SOLD
Year: 2016
Size: 6″ x 8″ x ~5″
Flower Child was created using a paper mache skull, painter’s caulk, acrylic flower beads, acrylic paint, spray paint, and wood.
The Story:
The skull at the base of Flower Child began life as The Seafarer. After several years, I finally had to come to grips with the fact that I had created some really unsuccessful pieces. My Day of the Dead skulls all started out with basic archetypes. Over time that became increasingly difficult. As a result, my work also suffered. While I am officially retiring this theme, I want to try to sell the work I have rather than committing to a landfill. Flower Child is the first of the unsuccessful pieces to get a makeover.
The inside of the skull still features the same pale bluish-green from the original piece. After carefully wrapping the frame in aluminum foil to protect it, I covered the skull in painter’s caulk that was colored a pale green. Caulk has adhesive properties so I carefully began inserting the acrylic floral beads into it. I let it cure for a full 7 days before proceeding.
The hardest part of this piece was painting the centers of all those flowers black. It took hours but it was worth the effort, in my opinion. It makes the flowers stand out much more than they had. It also makes the black outline for the teeth less of a focal point.