Ladybug Cold Bronze Wall Plaque
By Jeanne Dana Studios
Each piece is signed and dated with the year of production.
Approx 8.5×8.5″
With the growth of the internet came a steady decline in the use of greeting cards. Always innovating, Jeanne Dana began to create cast paper sculptures and paper mache art from their old greeting card scraps. Plaster was added to the paper castings to make them more durable and they started incorporating novel coloring and waterproofing techniques in the process. These experimental designs were the foundation of their new company, PaperAndStone. Some of their early designs are still in use today. Over the years they have replaced paper with more advanced, natural materials that allow the pieces to last for hundreds of years. In the 21st century, Jeanne Dana’s art has become more architectural, being further influenced by more contemporary designs.
Each design is hand sculpted in our clay studio. Our styling is best described as decorative, early/ancient European on contemporary themes. The finished design is made into a master mold from the plaster. The master is then used to make reinforced latex production molds. Every piece is cast by hand using a proprietary blend of hydrocal, plaster, and fortifying agents to produce a piece of art that is both strong and lightweight. The castings are then shaped by hand with angle grinders, files, and sand paper so that each piece has its own unique form. Once shaped, the casting is then primed with a cold bronze coating before being colored with gold leaf, metal fibers, acid dyes, patinas, and an acid wash. Each piece is painted by hand and due to the natural chemical processes taking place, no one piece is alike. The finished art piece is sealed with a UV and waterproof coating that will preserve the colors and protect it from the elements.
” Ladybug totem is an ally that keeps away pesky people and situations and encourages only blessings and well-being in your life. Ladybugs are a gardener’s friend because they eat aphids, which can destroy plants. Farmers and gardeners often purposely release these beetles as a natural pest control to protect their crops and garden plants.
Ladybugs use natural self-defense in that they can coat their body with an unpleasant secretion that leaves a bad taste in the mouth of a predator. They can also play dead to distract predators. Ladybug reminds you to shield yourself from unwelcome negative energies. In this case, use your imagination to envelop yourself in the color red and add black spots or a black outer lining during times when you feel threatened.
On a personal note, I learned about Ladybug as a child from my mother. She was the first to inform me that this charming little insect is also known as Mary beetle or Our Lady’s beetle. They got this name from a story dating back to the Middle Ages when food crops were being ravaged by insects. Farmers and villagers prayed to Mother Mary for help, and very soon, ladybugs arrived and ate the offending insects. Therefore, on a spiritual level, when Ladybug shows up in the garden of your life, it is a message to open your sacred heart and petition the blessings and help from Mother Mary or the Divine Feminine. When Ladybug flies into your life, know that you are blessed with good luck and all that is good.
~excerpt from Margaret Ann Lembo‘s Animal Totems
