Treachery of Colours (english)

Treachery of Colours (english)

In 1929 Rene Magritte painted a pipe, one for smoking (not sewage!), and under wrote the words "Ceci n'est pas une pipeot” French for "This is not a pipe". Along with other similar works his concept threw the artworld into a spin when asked about it he simply said "...if I had written on my picture "This is a pipe, I'd have been lying!"

This piece was inspired by a recent lecture I attended by James Fox following the release of his book "The World According to Colour". Of course the butterfly looks blue (well to most of us), but then on many (may be more) levels it is not... It has no blue pigment, the 'colour' being created by structure not pigment, if you shine a light through it they appear brown, in fact they are brown. What you're seeing as blue may also not be what I am, the viral blue and black (or was it gold and brown) dress recently proved that. Then there's the word, it's just a label we've given the colour afterall, it isn't actually blue, it is a butterfly and blue can mean many things.

Framed piece comprising of a preserved blue Morpho Menelaus Zischkai with the words This is Not Blue cut from the wings and mounted below

Morpho Menelaus Zischkai found from Central America, one of most stunning large blue morpho species.

Many of my specimens come from historical collections, others through from breeding and conservation projects (read more here).

Limited edition piece available for exhibition and commission, email me on hello@fionaparkinson.com for more details