Medieval Bestiary Clay Quilt, Clay on Wood Assemblage Collage

This piece is an assemblage of polymer clay squares, resembling the structure of a patchwork quilt. The squares are mounted on a textured and painted 0.7 inch plywood base with a moulded trim to the edge. The quilt is based around images taken from Medieval bestiaries - kind of like an animal encyclopaedia of the Middle Ages, but including the magical and mythical. The manuscripts these creatures have been taken from date from the 13th and 14th Centuries and are from England and Flanders. The quilt shows (from top left) ibex, hounds, asp, griffin, siren and onocentaur, dragon, horses, goats and monoceros (sometimes considered a separate beast to the unicorn). The polymer clay tiles have been made using a transfer technique and then varnished to protect the finish. The frames have been stamped, embossed with mica powders and embellished with glass cabochons. The clay is layered to give an extra dimensional quality. The base has been textured and painted in metallic acrylics, and the edge trim is finished in bronze. The quilt is ready to hang, with two brass D-rings and picture wire fitted to the back. It would benefit from being positioned where it can catch the light to make the most of the reflective nature of the materials.