Blue Bird

This small, exquisite jewel of a painting, the size and shape of a medieval tile, shows a bird with its wings fanning all around itself as it flutters, as if depicting multiple wingbeats rather than a single static wing. The thick impasto of the brushstrokes which form the aquamarine foreground have a sculptural texture, like the verdigris of weathered copper, and contrast with the fine, delicate detail of the feathers. The clear cobalt blue of the bird is reminiscent of stained glass, giving a devotional, almost spiritual dimension to the subject, which could be a dove, bringing peace, or the literal bluebird of happiness.