Using mussel shells in a still life with blue lusterware has been in the back of my mind for quite a while. I thought that white linen would be a good backdrop for them, and it probably would be... but these old, rough-sawn boards happened to be nearby when I chose an east window as my light source, so I lined them up as a tabletop and immediately liked what I saw. The colors are just complimentary enough, the wood grain shapes just similar enough to the shells, and the texture just varied enough from the other subjects to lend a comfortable beauty to the setting.
Sharing this detail of my work-in-progress gives me incentive to keep working, through muggy weather and summer activities, and get this done! Look for the entire, finished piece to be posted soon.
