The Ladybug

A traditional good luck symbol embroidered on Michael’s clothes when he was an infant. From that time on, whenever I wrote to him or sent a package, a ladybug was included in one form or another. It is my talisman.

It is currently artistic convention not to sign your painting on the front. Instead, we sign on the back. After Michael died, I remembered John Singer Sargent often painted a butterfly as his signature, so I decided to add Michael’s ladybug to my paintings when they sell. Usually almost hidden, think Where’s Waldo.