The color green, Lilly of the Valley, Tulips too- all blessings I sing rejoicing each spring.    Part of the "Centripetal Satire" series, I combine Fraktur (PA German Folk-Art) and Scherenscnitte (German paper-cutting) with watercolor.  In my research of Fraktur, I was quickly drawn to the circular shape of columns and cuts of a piece completed by a schoolmaster from the early 1800's (to compensate for their small wages, schoolmasters made and sold Frakturs such as birth and marriage certificates).  Putting my spin on the circle, I wrap familiar objects with irony to tell a fun story with a twist.   

There were many reasons for making Fraktur- each type serving a different purpose- they were made as teaching tools to document family events, as religious tracts, to show ownership of simply for fun (Fraktur: Folk Art and Family, Corinne and Russell Earnest).   

Tulips- Sometimes called the Lily of the Field.  As a little girl I was exposed to a small portion of Fraktur when my mother sat me down and demonstrated these techniques using paint and paper to create a flat tulip- the “Fancy Dutch”, as we are called, were very fond of the tulip and it is a flower painted many times over in countless ways, each unique to the individual artist.   

Four Leaf Clover- an image which appears in historic Frakturs.