"All across the meadows, many poppies blossomed, and they were so hypnotic and brilliant in colour they nearly dazzled Dorothy's eyes. "Aren't they beautiful?" the girl asked her companions, as she breathed in the spicy scent of the big, bright flowers."

– The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum.

As children we all imagine climbing through the back of our wardrobes into Narnia, falling down a rabbit hole into Wonderland, or getting swept up by a hurricane and landing with a giant thump in Oz.
Dorothy and her companions have long been a source of wonder to me. It wasn’t enough to create one interpretation of this gang, I had to dive in again – this time into a giant field of poppies.

”As she walked on her eyes grew very heavy, and soon she felt she must sit down to rest and to even sleep.”
– The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum.

Like Dorothy, I also found myself stepping out of black and white and into a world of full colour! It was a completely different way of working for me - and I enjoyed it so much.
(I’ve dabbled with client work previously, but never took the leap in my own work until now.)

In a nod to the Dorothy of L. Frank Baum, her shoes are not the shimmering ruby slippers we’ve come to know and love, but heels in the original silver - courtesy Prada, complete with blue bow!
Fun Fact: Dorothy’s shoes were changed to the famous ruby slippers in order to show off the brand new technicolour film for the 1938 release.
I also chose to focus only on the Cowardly Lion and Dorothy as those familiar with the story will know that the Tin Man and Scarecrow weren’t affected by the poisonous poppies - not being 100% human/animal/vegetable/mineral - and carry the two out of the fields before they fall asleep forever.

These sleepy beauties are my first new print of 2019 - just sneaking in before the end of the year.
As mentioned previously, my print shop is changing and from now on print releases will be a little more limited and available in one size/edition only.
So with that I give you the latest offering: “Poppies” is available in an edition of 20 prints only - in a lovely large A2 size - the best way to appreciate all of those tiny poppies in detail!
To purchase a print visit the shop here: www.birdyandme.com/shop
(For a sneaky pre-Christmas 10% discount use code: XMAS19)

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The Wizard of Oz, photographed by Annie Leibovitz for Vogue US, Dec 2005

“The Deadly Poppy Field,” illustration by W. W. Denslow