Oh, The Things You Say On a Winter’s Day

size: 8 x 10 inches
medium: cut and torn paper on wood
click here or the image for bigger whisperings

Shaky and trembling. Icy winds bite deep, freezing to the core, to the very center. Until a whisper of a word or a trill comes on the bitter wind, caresses and sinks in through the skin. Cracks the frigid rime and the blood flows once more.

Or, lacking a warm word or a caring cardinal, doctors have found hot cocoa to have incredible healing qualities. Properly made, hot chocolate has been known not only to cure cases of the shivers, but also to help with hypothermia and reverse the ravages of frostbite. In one documented case, a massive batch of the sweet concoction was witnessed to completely revive a woolly mammoth that had been encased in a glacier for centuries.* Plus, it’s yummy.

“Oh, The Things You Say On a Winter’s Day”, can be seen right now in San Francisco’s Gallery 1988′s “Battle Royal” group show, until July 18, 2009.

It’s not that often that the idea for a piece leaps fully formed into my head, but this one came closer than most. Usually I work out all the elements and composition of a piece in the sketch stage. This one came to me while working on another piece, and had pretty much settled into this image by the time I picked up a pencil. If only they all could come so smoothly. Look at the pretty birdy.

*do not believe me. about any of this.