Delicate Deaths
My bones are brittle in the sweet embrace​ of death
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The individual pieces from Katie Versace's collection Delicate Deaths. Created throughout 2015-2016.
Most of the works (sans Bait, Don't Touch Me, and In the Balance ) were created using watercolour painted directly onto unprimed wood panels. An Initial detailed pencil illustration would be outlined in black watercolour, and once the detail of the animal bone was finalized the entire background of the piece would be filled in with solid black.
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Initially the pieces were created as experimentations with watercolour and how different surfaces affected absorbency. As unprimed wood is especially absorbent it took multiple coats to fully cover the surface. However, even with how quickly the wood could dry, blending was still achievable. in the end I decided to continue producing the works directly onto wood as the woodgrain formed an interesting visual element to the pieces. Rather than a totally solid black background the grain of the wood acted as a very subtle natural texture and pattern for the white bones to stand out against.
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The idea to create a large body of work containing various species and sizes originated from two sources. My fascination with the idea of creating my own Cabinet of Curiosity and the, 1750 - current day, tradition of British watercolour botanical and zoologist field studies.
The themes I hoped to evoke with the total collection were those of mortality, tenderness, delicacy, fragility, self reflection, and life cycles. I was and still remain inspired by the natural world and what it leaves behind, it is both lasting and fleeting.