Beautiful and useful at the same time: that was my basic idea when planning the figure. But what kind of face should it have? I didn't want to portray beauty as we see it in all the catalogs, on advertising posters and packaging. It should be different, more thoughtful, more reserved, but at the same time likeable and friendly.
Many people of color struggle with being categorized based on their skin color - often negative ones. But colored skin that is not simply "black" or "brown" is particularly interesting, don't you think? It can also be understood as a symbol: so many nuances, so many possibilities...
I first painted this one with a chocolate brown underglaze and then with a glaze that beautifully highlights the velvety texture of the skin without being overpowering. The color is not just brown - here and there reddish tones appear, which looks lively and varied.
You can hang the mural outside or inside the house using a hook or something similar, because the head is hollow, as you can see in the photos. There is a special reason why I left the pupils out: small insects can slip through; they find a protected winter home in the hollow space. If you then fill the figure with some moss, autumn leaves or thin branches before hanging it up, you will be helping them even more. Aren't we all doing far too little to combat the insect extinction?
The relief actually consists of five parts: the face and three bowls are on a plate. The latter can be used as feeding places for wild birds, for example, but you can also arrange tillandsias or dried flowers in them if it is hanging in the house. In the house, the additional benefit for the insects is lost - but by leaving out the pupils, the depth of the gaze seems to change depending on the incidence of light.
Dimensions: approx. 30 x 26 cm, depth approx. 9 cm