Diana Shaul Fine Art

Story: I sit down on the steps and think of you, in awe of all that you accomplished so many years ago. I have decided that I must restore this place you built, but I worry that I may not be up to the task. You were a legend in your own time, one who commanded respect and loyalty, able to stir spirits with her wild words. And I am... just me. I look up at the wall before me, the only wall that remains, and I realise that I don't even know where to begin. And that is when I see you, casually leaning against the doorway, a woman I've only ever seen in history books, here with me.

You wear a long purple gown, not the practical jeans and work boots you supposedly favoured, and I wonder if deep inside you might've been a girly girl, like me. What a thought to have at a time like this! But is it possible that we might have more in common than that? Could it be that your mind was also once filled with doubts? I have a thousand questions to fire at you, but I can't find words, afraid that you might fade away if I demand anything of you. So instead I watch you for a while in silence, hoping you might choose to make the first move. But it is as if you can't see me, as if we are separated, if not by space, then by time.

As I look at you, I notice your outstretched arm and open hand. Against the wall I see a small shadow moving. A butterfly alights on your palm. And this place changes. Grey stone suddenly shimmers with jewels and becomes home to climbing roses. And for each of my thousand questions, there is a butterfly. I turn away from you, knowing that you will be gone when I turn back. When you were starting out, you hadn't yet become the woman I learned about at school. You were an ordinary girl, but one who allowed herself to shine. Doubts must not cast their shadows on my passion. If this thing is going to work out, I need to believe in myself. I hold out my hand, palm open, a perfect landing pad.

Media: Acrylic and mixed media

Surface: Daler-Rowney 100% acid-free cotton stretched canvas

Size: 50cm x 60cm x 1.5cm [depth]; 19.69" x 23.62" x 0.59" [depth]