Jungle Bonnet

I started painting animals with food on their heads in 2017. The inspiration came from my daughter who, as an infant, always put the first bite of every meal on top of her head before she would finish eating. It made for funny photos…and even funnier paintings. I have a deep love and appreciation for all animals having spent about 8 years working in the zoo and aquarium industry before becoming a full time artist. I love food, I don’t cook, I collect cook books, and I love to eat. All these pieces elements come together in this art. I made these shaped canvases by first designing the composition of the piece and cutting it out on boards before stretching the canvas. I also added a clay relief to the front of the piece to play with the mix of 2-d and 3-d. This is an oil painting on canvas and clay. I chose to add tropical fruits and the flamingo to the top of this hat to pull in the African jungle elements. I spend a lot of time scouring milliners designs. There’s a lot of British Hat Guild inspiration in this piece.