Description

This is Rosie, an African Grey parrot. She belongs to a friend. I have been studying still life from an art history perspective in the last few months and I had an image in mind that I wanted to capture. I had seen a picture called “Still Life with Parrot” by William Merritt Chase in one of my books. I was somewhat smitten with the image and I wanted to replicate it in a contemporary way. As I prepared my equipment and props for the shoot I remembered an old fan in the garage. I thought it would add a bit of nostalgia to the image. I feel the picture is successful and the fan definitely helped. The teapot on the left side of the picture is the work of a ceramics master and friend Tom Meuninck. Tom lives and works in the northern Indiana town of North Liberty which is near Elkhart. The teacups are Japanese as is the vase. I stopped and picked some wild flowers on my way to the shoot. I hope you enjoy this as much as I have in the conceptualizing, planning and execution phases. Thanks also to Rosie and her peeps.