Might I have a bit of earth? by Sarah Imrisek in Toronto

A homeowner in Chicago wanted a mural for the wall adjacent to her deck, overlooking her beautiful garden. Her primary request was for black swallowtail butterflies (her favorite visitors in the garden) and to incorporate a tattoo art style. I researched plants indigenous to the area that swallowtails feed on and picked a selection of those flowers to make the focal point of the mural. Initially, I designed a hummingbird for the upper left corner, but upon her request, I happily swapped it for a fat little sparrow. In line with the tattoo theme, I wanted a banner with lettering to tie the piece together, and she provided the perfect quote: "Might I have a bit of earth?" from Francis Hodgson Burnett's charming novel, The Secret Garden. The mural is 8 feet wide and 15 feet high, with earth tones extending down beneath the deck to the ground below.