The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate

Dimensions: 12″ X 12″ X 16″  Materials: Steel, paint, ribbon, yarn, glass, bone, wood, leaves

full view
full view

This sweet little basket appeared after reading a wonderful book called The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelley. This charming book is about a twelve year old girl who lives in northern Texas in 1899 and who struggles between the expected norms for a girl of her time versus her intense love of the outdoors and learning everything about it. Her mother wants her to become a society girl, and tries to teach her the finer points of being a lady. Her grandfather is an amateur naturalist and introduces her to a new author by the name of Charles Darwin.  The two of them spend many hours collecting a cataloguing the natural world around them.

Yes, you guessed it, this book really spoke to me and without my consciously thinking about it, the basket that I have been struggling with for the past month evolved into a wonderful portrayal of this story. I was so taken with the book that I wrote the author and she said she would be honored if I were to give this piece the same title as her book.

This sculpture comes with a free copy of Jacqueline’s book.

detail of natural additions
detail of natural additions
detail, top
detail, top
detail, inside
detail, inside