Swallowtail Prairie - A New Piece from Ariane

Ariane Parkes-Perret is a talented artist, punctilious printmaker, and dedicated member here at ICPC. She’s also a member of Bluestockings Feminist Art Collective, and sells her work at various artisan farmers’ markets in the area. Ariane primarily works in linocut, and in the recent years, her study has been.. are you ready?

Natural Mechanisms that Support Healthy Food Systems

Pretty cool, right? It gets more fun. So, as it turns out, it’s not just bees that collect pollen on their bodies as they travel from flower-restaurant to flower-restaurant. Butterflies do too! It’s a beautiful natural mechanism that makes plant propagation possible, which in turn sustains the rest of the animal kingdom, via food, oxygen, and shade. Nature’s miracles = Ariane’s Inspiration.

Anyway, the Iowa native Swallowtail Butterfly specifically caught Ariane’s eye. Its distinct and and high-contrast wing pattern stood out to her as a perfect image to replicate on linoleum. Check it out:

Surrounding the butterfly are echinacea and calendula, which are some of its favorite flower-restaurants, and also– in case you didn’t know– good for us humans too.

Ariane’s 6”x9” Swallowtail linoprint in Prussian blue oil-based ink is printed on Japanese paper for its excellent absorption and the soft, sensitive quality it adds to the final image. It is framed and on display currently at High Ground Cafe in Iowa City. You can own your very own Swallowtail Prairie print for $110 framed, or $70 matted. Contact Ariane at bacchi14@gmail.com and follow her on Instagram @ariane3316