Queen

Materials used:

Driftwood base, from a Wyoming lake shore
painted plaster cast of my face
seed pods, Big Island, Hawaii
large, worn shells, Florida
miniature sand dollars, Mexico
sea urchins, Hawaii
green forest lichen, Hyalite Forest, Montana
pieces of broken cowry shells, Hawaii

(qall mount 18“x15“x7“)

When I was a playful young girl, I sometimes stretched my youthful imagination and played “queen.” Outside my London home was a bushy green hedge. As I had few playmates in the neighborhood, I had much time for solo play and I often created, in my mind, an entire civilization of small beings (based on the children’s book “The Borrowers”) who lived under the hedge. And I was their queen! Such grand playtime.

Women are often “queen of something.” Queen of a tribe, family, a group of like-minded individuals, they stand out, regal and royal in their abilities or attributes. They can be queens of conversations, of gentleness and generosity, of the kitchen, of a classroom, of sports, politics, whatever.

This mask honors all women with queenly, unique or exceptional prowess or specialties. “Queen” is an acknowledgment of their femininity, their power, their gifts and their abilities as Queens. May the love they share, the wisdom they offer, and the guidance they exude... reign on.