Compensation for Loss

2019 22”h, 16” w watercolour and collage

This cracked turtle shell has been repaired with Delft tiles decorated with images of a turtle and a tortoise, a possible solution to the dilemma conservators face when a turtle specimen breaks and there are no natural turtle shells available to use for the missing pieces. The Delft tiles symbolize the Age of Exploration and, specifically, the Dutch dominance of trade routes, which aided their quest to acquire attractions from the natural world for their noblemen’s Wunderkammers (curio galleries).

• Watercolour