A rejected floral feather I met Percy the Peacock at Filoli in March. It was a windy, rainy day when only a few stalwart visitors to the garden were to be seen. (And a few artists ... our scout was scheduled that day, so there we were, wellies and raincoats - collars held against the wind, prepared to envision our art in better climes and more verdant too.) As I was preparing to leave, having gone back for one more look at where some glass grapes might best be dangled from copper vines yet to be fashioned, I came upon Percy. He was, for all his jewel-toned feathers, a bit bedraggled, and I was told the story about how Percy the peacock had moved up the road of his own volition, bringing with him his peahen, to make a home at Filoli. A fine choice for a wondrous creature such as he! Unfortunately his mate has disappeared, so Percy lives there alone (but among so many admirers, perhaps he doesn't notice!). After allowing me a few photos, Percy took his leave and I gasped as his tail dragged heavily through the puddles and muck. It was then that I started to imagine a "Pal for Percy."
Now blown glass peacock feathers are much different from the real thing. And if they are to light at night, even more so! Patty and I spent several days in the hot shop in April trying out different techniques and colours to get something that would be glorious enough, but also manageable on the end of a copper tube not meant for blowing glass, but necessary for me to use my tried and true techniques for lighting. Barry and I had just been to see the Bouquets to Art at the deYoung Museum, so I was inspired to make my peacock of modified glass flowers - this would give me some leeway on replicating a stunningly elegant bird and bring the project into my own sphere of garden worship. Or so I thought...
The feathers and head (also glass) were one thing, but the structure to hold them quite another! I was prepared to make a mosaic body but the weight of all the glass was going to require a reasonably strong inner structure - and that might require welding - and that might require some planning and drawings and measurements. But then I saw an old tomato cage behind my shed and the idea dawned... Two tomato cages joined at the wide end would make a torso and taper off at one end to be the tail and the other end the neck and voila! Our friends Jessica and Bruce were taking off on a year-long bike tour and Barry and I were to film their take-off from San Francisco and then meet them for breakfast (which ended up being lunch) in Half Moon Bay. We got up at 5 am that day and I threw the tomato cages and a bag full of bolt cutters, thin wire, pliers and duct tape into the back of the van - just in case we'd have some idle time to start on the structure. While Bruce and Jess pedaled southward, we swung by Filoli to measure an arbor for the grapes and by the time we got to Half Moon Bay, Bruce and Jess were just minutes away! So after lunch, while Jess and Bruce off-loaded half their gear into our car (they had to get much more realistic about how much weight they could carry), Barry and I got busy with the structure... right in the parking lot of our lunch rendez-vous! You just never know when or where the creative urge (and the urgency of an upcoming show) will strike! Here is the inner peacock so far ...
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