♪♪
-Feathers are -- they're complicated,
which is why I like them.
♪♪
They evolved to make a bird be able to fly
and there's all these little nuances
to the structure of the feather
that I'm still finding out after all these years.
When I look at a feather, I see different things.
Sometimes it's more just a feeling of lightness
and a connection to the bird.
They're magical. They're symbols of flight.
They're symbols for our aspirations.
So when a bird sheds a feather,
like they do every year, more or less,
it's kind of like a gift.
Each feather that is shed
has -- has a story.
♪♪
I like having a feather, holding it,
and just looking at it and dropping it maybe,
and watching it flutter around just to give me ideas.
And I might get an inspiration from the feather
just by the shape of it
and the theme I'm trying to portray.
Each -- Each piece is determined by the size of the feather.
I only shape and size and color --
are the feathers themselves.
I don't color the feathers. They're natural.
It starts out as a drawing.
I'll draw it out first,
and then I'll have to pick the right feather,
refine it, and size a template to the feather.
Then...I will cut.
And I usually don't make a mistake because it's so --
I mean, there's so much process to get up to that point.
And the feathers are precious.
The cuts are final. I can't undo it.
I can't, like, erase it or paint over it.
It's the final.
♪♪
I use eye surgery tools
because I want the intimacy of creating the art
rather than doing it with like a laser,
which would be just a machine doing it.
It's a different connection to the material
when I do it by hand because I'm touching it.
I'm touching it, and I'm able to pay really close attention
to every little part of the feather.
Well, the white ones were their cheek feathers.
In all of my pieces, I'm telling a story.
And whether that's the story that you make up
when you see it, it might be different.
I hope that people will see my work in ways that I haven't.
Like, they'll see things in it that I haven't seen
or see a different story.
I'm hoping that they'll stop and wonder.
Like seeing a feather
as if it was the first time they've ever seen one.
They show a sense of wonder.
It really floats my boat.
It makes it worthwhile being an artist.
♪♪
-Learn more about Chris at featherfolio.com
and see his work in the ArtX Contemporary exhibit,
"Blind Birds, Winged Dreams",
running now through November 25th.
♪♪
Catch Art Zone Friday nights at eight and anytime online at seattlechannel.org/artzone