Butterfly Lungs (Aztec Skipper)

16" x 12"
oil on panel

I like the symmetry and duality of the butterfly form and the human form. Some oppositions they evoke are: halves and a core, internal and external, fragility and strength, function and beauty. I like the juxtaposition of implied movement: the breathing lungs and the pumping wings. The brown, black, and purple are striking in their richness, but can also seem unpleasant, the way anatomy is simultaneously amazing and repulsive. It ties our bodies to nature, a connection environmentalists are trying to re-establish. I think the main feeling behind this strange image is that of purpose and potential futility. There is no guarantee that all the effort will result in meeting some tangible goal. There is the belief that the striving is important. It is in opposition to apathy.

It is the icon of my daily life, rinsing out jelly jars and putting clothing tags in the paper recycling bin. It is eating Tofurky (very good in a sandwich with cranberry sauce). I was glad to see a recent article* in the New York Times by Mark Bittman address the environmental impact of eating meat. He suggests the federal government's daily recommendation for protein intake is inflated. Gee, could meat lobbyists be involved?! It's not just "Big Tobacco" out there, it's "Big Meat".

A striking analogy from the article is this quote:

"To put the energy-using demand of meat production into easy-to-understand terms, Gidon Eshel, a geophysicist at the Bard Center, and Pamela A. Martin, an assistant professor of geophysics at the University of Chicago, calculated that if Americans were to reduce meat consumption by just 20 percent it would be as if we all switched from a standard sedan — a Camry, say — to the ultra-efficient Prius."

I do drive a Prius, but I confess to the world that I eat bananas. They travel far to reach me and I sympathise with all the carnivores out there, because it is hard to give things up. I eat Tofurky; I don't know if I can give up bananas.

*used with permission