This is one of the smallest pieces I have made, and I think that is part of what it is about. The jewel beetle is one of those creatures most people walk right past, but up close its shell holds more color than any gemstone. I wanted to give something that small and overlooked the kind of attention we usually reserve for sacred objects.

I painted it as a reliquary, a little vessel for something precious. The beetle sits at the center like a relic, ornamented and lit from within, part specimen and part offering. There is a long tradition of holding nature up as something holy, and this piece is my quiet version of that.

The vintage Italian frame was the starting point. It already had that devotional, old-world feeling, and it asked for something intimate inside it. The whole work is really an invitation to slow down and look closely, to find the wonder in the small things that are easy to miss.