"a cicada’s rebirth”

from the bugs i considered friends to the games i found comfort and solace in, this piece was filled with many things that held meaning to both the past and present me. they adorn the things i'm too scared to speak, for once they leave my mouth i fear i may never get them back. as scary as it may be, it's imperative that i shed these thoughts and feelings weighing me down. how scared too, must the cicada be? living its entire life underground but knowing that it will die there alone and with nothing unless it has the strength to surface.

the cicada emerges into a page filled with reminders of its past, body still soft and raw; the translucent green will soon darken as it's new body becomes acclimated with life outside of its shell. everything it once was remains in the shell it stands on, and yet everything that it was is reflected in everything that it is. it's all still there, just different as room is made for the new. though it emerged a little later than it's peers, it still screams just as loud and just as unapologetically.

the cicada was made with acrylic paint marker and iridescent cardboard from a blind box to build up depth in the veins of the wings. i used the same method for the cicada shell, which clings to the abstracted bark of the tree, made up of origami paper and more cardboard. littered across the piece are fragmented thoughts and memories taking shape in the form of magazine clippings and written text, sometimes with textboxes made up from ghibli bookmarks and candy packaging. the delicate flowers were made from shipping envelopes and painted to get texture and depth, as well as a couple being made from more candy box cardboard.

i also made a little stamp there from the blind box i used for the cicada shell.

@strawberrymilk_uwo