Presto is short for Preston and papilio is Latin for butterfly. This is a series of illustrations I'm making to to remember my dead friend Preston. He was my best friend in high school. We lost touch after school. He died of an overdose before I got a chance to reconnect with him in my adult life. It still bother me sometimes.
Well I was working at my shop out in the middle Georgia countryside when a butterfly landed on my finger. I actually tried to shake it off at first, but it just stayed on my finger for a long time. It allowed me to look at it up close and appreciate the beautiful patterns in its wings.
For some odd reason I just started calling that butterfly by my dead friends name, Preston. I had a very nice conversation with that butterfly until it eventually got tired of me and flew away. Now I call all butterflies I see Preston. I don't believe in an afterlife or reincarnation, but this little lie I tell myself when I talk to butterflies and refer to them as my dead friend makes me feel good.
Well later on I was thinking of that butterflies' wings and how intricate the patterns on it are. That along with a butterfly design on my shower curtain that I see everyday, inspired me to create Presto Papilio. I like the idea of it looking like a scientific presentation, so I include the names of the butterflies in Latin.
I decided I'd make five butterflies at a time and keep them all to a theme.
Warning Signs. My first theme. The things that visually tell us not to touch something. It kinda goes with butterflies because the are very fragile and you should never grab them by their wings. if they gently land on your finger and you end up calling them by your dead friends name, that's ok.
Pure Emotions. My second theme. I love faces. Really expressive faces are the best, so I tried to create some emotional faces in the wings of these butterflies.
What Papilio should come next?
0%Athletics
0%Religions
0%Holidays
0%Countries
If you like these. Prints are available for sale in my shop section.
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