Butterflies

These limited edition linoleum block prints with watercolor were developed as studies for a larger set of butterfly prints titled, Migration is Beautiful Linoleum Block Edition. I hand printed these works in my basement art studio, months before I moved into my first major studio in West Oakland.

This piece was a reinterpretation of my classic Migration is Beautiful poster which I originally created in 2012. The monarch butterfly represents the natural act that is migration. Human beings have been migrating since the beginning of time. We are a part of nature, and it is in our human nature to move, just as all other species move. Borders were created by governments - but they are meant to keep people in or out, they are not a natural part of our environment.

My butterfly artworks imagine a world without borders and symbolize the rights of all living beings to move freely. Like the monarch butterfly, human beings cross borders in search of safer habitats. Like the monarch butterfly, human beings cross borders in order to survive. Each wing in this butterfly shows a human profile.