Madam Lola (the showgirl)

8.5x6.5x5

Yes, you know this one. Lola was a showgirl, but that was a looong time ago. With faded feathers in her hair, Lola recently tried her hand at twerking and found her pelvis just isn't what it used to be. Lola's dancing career is at its twilight. 
Luckily, a gentle man from her distant past left our girl a beautiful home in the French Quarter of New Orleans. There Lola owns a private courtyard where she has become dear friends with a murder of crows. They all love to dance and sing together when they aren't dining on gumbo from the Quarter Grocery Store. Lola, by the way, is an elephant.
M. Lola by Betsy Youngquist is part of an ongoing series of found object masks celebrating the interconnected web of life on planet Earth. This mask was made using a wooden foundry form from Memphis, TN. These foundry forms were used to create sand casted molds in Memphis during the first half of the last century. Parts for trains, ships, and streetcars were manufactured through this process. 
A portion of the sale of this piece is being donated to the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust.


Ingredients
-Human prosthetic eyes (India)
-Red African grey parrot feathers (commonly used to contact ancestors somewhere in Africa I am told)
-Swarovski glass rhinestones (Austria)
-Antique glass beads (Italy 1800s)
-Vintage beaded embroidery trim (repurposed and gifted)
-Metal woven bead fragments from a purse (France)
-Repurposed coat fur
-Porcelain arms (Germany 1860-1930)

These masks are so incredibly fun to make that I can't stop myself......;)