OniOniOniArt

"It's National Poetry Month! Write a poem or make something inspired by a poem you like" I decided to create tanka, a classical Japanese poetry style similar to haiku in that you have a set number of syllables per line. Tanka are 5-7-5-7-7 and often depend on puns and double entendres for meaning (I have no such skill). They were frequently introduced with a bit of prose describing the feeling, thoughts, mood, scenery, or any other bit of information about why or when it was composed, that gave further depth and context to the short poems. When a friend asked me to name a favorite insect I replied: The tiger beetle Mantispids are another Mantids, can't deny My favorite's hard to pin Can't even choose an Order! On discovering my beloved mantids belonged with vile roaches on the cladogram: Preying mantids may evolutionarily  be predatory elongated cockroaches, I pray not show revulsion More on classical Japan here . ...

Caterpillar Medallion Remember the Lady Who Loved Insects ? This is for her.  There are many (lovely) traditional Japanese designs with butterfly motifs, including numerous medallions. Where are the caterpillars? [February 16, 2016]

Acrylic pigment ink, gold iridescent ink, and India ink (ACEO) At first glance this does not appear to be insect related, However! My Lady is the subject of an unfinished, anonymous 12th century Japanese tale, The Lady Who Loved Insects . Her love of insects and reptiles made her contemporaries think her eccentric; though she thought them eccentric.  Thinking of the lady next door she asks, "Why do people make so much fuss about butterflies and never give a thought to the creatures out of which butterflies grow?" She particularly liked caterpillars. Not caring what anyone else thought of her, she kept insects as pets and did not conform to the beauty customs of the day. She also named all the little boys in her neighborhood after insects. Art Notes! I styled this after tale illustrations from the Heian period, when this tale was written. A: Silk Worm Racks Silk worms are kept in baskets or on basket trays on a rack, as pictured here (though most ar...

I have just finished reading this delightful compilation of tales from medieval Japan (the bulk of them originating from the Heian era, c. 794-1185), translated by Royall Tyler. There are over 200 tales included in this translation, but the main source used by Tyler, the Konjaku monogatarishu  ("Tales of Times Now Past" c. 1100), is itself a five-volume compilation.  I won't complain further, though, as this tome in its entirety requires the investment of an exceedingly large sum of money.  (Mr. Tyler's is the affordable snack-size version, and every bit as tasty). The Heian period is generally described as a golden age in Japan when arts and culture flourished (one of the more interesting aspects being the existence of a number of renowned women authors and poets). The folk tales featured here are tiny windows into everyday life in medieval Japan spanning history, myth and fantasy, superstition, religious/Buddhist ideals, and the prevailing thoughts and desi...