Last week, I was in Brooklyn visiting friends. I went on an excursion with Liz and ended up at a store called Union Max. I bought a set of 1970’s moth/butterfly specimens— each preserved in cellophane.
The lady at the counter warned me that they will easily fall apart; however, they were inexpensive and the idea of framing them felt exciting. I saved one for myself and finally devoted some time this afternoon to frame the one pictured above.
The task ended up being a real mother f’er—the attention to detail required to complete the project was way more than I anticipated. After carefully cutting open the cellophane, the pieces instantly fell apart. I turned off the A.C. to prevent the wings from literally flying away and ran off to grab gloves, tweezers, and other tools.
Painstaking as it was, the end-result was quite satisfying. I am going to try my best to keep the piece safe and sound. Afterwards, I made sure to warn Liz that the one I gave her will probably be a beast.
Here is a photo of her yet-to-be-framed Lime Butterfly—so beautiful and fragile.
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