By Andrea Tomkins –
Local artist Patti Normand has installed over 100 hand painted butterflies in the window of Hintonburg’s The Studio Café. The installation is dedicated to her mother, Colleen, who died of ovarian cancer last spring.
Normand hopes passers-by will be caught up in the beauty, but also wants to get women of all ages talking about ovarian cancer.
“Most women don’t know the symptoms of it,” says Normand. ”It’s a silent killer, a disease that most women think is detected by a pap smear, but it’s not.”
Each butterfly is a small work of original art, the creation of which was part therapy, part meditation.
“I wanted something that would reflect my mother’s beautiful spirit,” says Normand. “Each one is different from each other,” says Normand. “It was important for me to do it this way.”
Making each butterfly was a lengthy process and involved various kinds of paper and layers of different paints and ink. The antennae are bits of thread dipped in glue. Each butterfly is unique, and some even contain a hidden message to her mother.
Normand is giving the butterflies to anyone who makes a donation to Ovarian Cancer Canada, and she’s also given them to women who are in treatment for ovarian cancer.
The butterflies will be on display at The Studio Café until October 5 and will be available for purchase at that time.
The Studio Café is located at 1089 Somerset St. West. For information about Patti Normand’s art go to pattinormand.com.