Artist Statement:
Two native pollinators, a Monarch butterfly and a Golden Northern bumblebee, both experiencing declines in population, grace this headdress. Their presence in my garden is both ordinary and wondrous, a reminder of the interdependence of plants, insects and climate. I have set them in a floral buffet of rudbeckia laciniata, rosa rugosa, centaurea and oak leaves. Traditionally, the flowers on a wreath have symbolic meaning. Here, I have chosen a message of resilience with rudbekia/yellow coneflower (a stand-in for Ukrainian sunflower) centaurea/cornflower (compassion, kindness), white rugosa roses (faith, hope, love) and oak leaves (courage, strength).