Following my artist-in-residency I was drawn to make a playful yet sinister educational piece that could inspire discussion on the invasive rusty crayfish. During my stay as artist-in-resident, I was struck with how the rusty crayfish could take over a lake and how the only way to eliminate them was the slow process of catching them! I was dismayed that a relatively small species could do this, zapping a diverse life right out of lakes, and then discovered that a single female could lay up to 575 eggs per year, and with that information I quickly saw how this invasive and bullying species could take over. So I created a scene reminiscent of a "freak show" showing a gigantic and aggressive rusty crayfish; I included one of my oil en plein air paintings I created on Trout Lake, and a shuttle that is reminiscent of a canoe that holds red ribbon. On the many yards of red ribbon are black dots, if the ribbon is drawn out of the shuttle, those black dots represent the amount of eggs the female can lay in one year. To label things, I used letterpress wood letters that I pressed into epoxy clay; and for other signage, I printed appropriate circus-typeface on fabric. I am always delighted with the reception of my odd assemblage pieces: youth (and the young at heart) are drawn to these assemblage pieces, using old, discarded toys. With those toys I add epoxy clay, fabric, ribbon, mirror, wood shuttle, and then finish with acrylic paint.
Diane Canfield Bywaters, Emerita Professor of Art from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, is an award-winning artist and teacher, creating en plein air oil paintings. Her work varies in size from these smaller paintings to large-scale pieces, which she creates heading out on location at the same time of day for many days in a row to catch a similar light. Her works are in major collections including Pepsi Corporation, United Airlines, General Motors, and the State Department. She has the honor and distinction of being selected to more artist-in-residencies in the U.S.A. National Parks than any other artist. Her artist-in-residencies also include many international locations including Italy and France, and she has also has traveled to create in Mexico, Iceland, England, Scotland, and Ireland.