Why Butterflies?

I chose butterflies as the subject of this painting series because of the transformation, the metamorphosis that they go through. That any creature can begin as a crawling, gorging little insect and then transform into an awe-inspiring flying wonder is just an astounding thing to imagine. It’s the stuff of fairy tales. And yet it happens all the time.
I like to imagine that humans can change like the butterfly. We look out into the world and see people driven by fear and hatred to do unthinkable acts. We humans cannot metamorphose like the butterfly but we can change and transform from fear and hatred and all of their consequences toward love and compassion, forgiveness, and gratitude.  If enough of us do this the world can’t help but change for the better.  I extend an image to the collective imagination with this exhibit of unmistakable transformation and metamorphosis, just as a reminder.