Monday, January 18, 2010

Rest In Peace Pipi... Laura Gillis



Pipi Longstockings was an Orb Weaver spider that lived on my front porch for most of 2009. I named her Pipi after the character in a book I read who always wore striped stockings.


Pipi made it through our December blizzard but the January nights below 20ˇ proved to be too much and she passed away. I had thought several times that she would not make it through the night, but every morning I would go out and she would be down on the ground at the edge of the little pile of hay I put out for her. When the sun warmed her up she would go sit in the web and do her work. I still don’t know how she lived as long as she did -- nature is just amazing when it comes to survival.


I don’t think you can really see it in the scan here, but Pipi’s top side was silver metallic kind of like the dull side of tin foil. She really was a beautiful spider and I will miss seeing her every day.


This is ink & watercolor on Hemp paper in the Nature Journal. I always knew I would find a use for that jar of Daniel Smith German Silver watercolor powder that I bought 15 years ago! ha!

7 comments:

  1. What a wonderful entry, Laura! Spiders amaze me, too...I would miss Pipi, too. You really captured the look of this beautiful orb weaver...

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  2. Beautiful sketch Laura, and poor Pipi...

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  3. Beautiful entry, and touching story. It might be hard for some folks to understand the idea of becoming attached to a spider, but I certainly can. Lovely sketch of Pipi (I loved the Pipi Longstocking books as a child too!).

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  4. Just beautifully done! Poor guy.

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  5. Well call me silly but I just love the fact that you liked this spider! Beautiful drawing too.

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  6. Love the drawing and I love the name too. I can tolerate spiders outside the house but not indoors - shudder.

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