Monarch

by Shelly Denning (assisted by Jack Pinder)

2020
19'x14'
acrylic paint, latex paint, enamel paint

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This piece is an anamorphic mural created for the Tarrant Regional Water District’s Trinity Trails. It honors native wildlife as well as the Native peoples who once lived in the area. The mural depicts a time after humans, when nature has gone on (perhaps better) without us. The decrepit structure and aging graffiti show signs of how human intervention can mar the otherwise beautiful landscape. The medicine wheel, birds and "574" (the number of federally-recognized Native tribes in the U.S.) honor those who respected the land more than our current civilization tends to do. The "J.P. + L.P." is a personal mark and refers to the initials of my children.

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The Monarch butterfly pays respect to the butterfly who chose this structure as a place to transform (causing me to adjust my original design so as not to disturb him). The title refers to him and to the doe in the painting.

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