I just entered my gouache painting, “Transcendental Rhythms: the Platypus Paradox” in the Virginia Beach Art Center’s “Endangered!” exhibition.

One of Australia’s most beloved species, the mystical duckbilled platypus is a nocturnal, semiaquatic, egg-laying mammal on the edge of extinction. 

She is an otherworldly being, able to perceive natural electrical stimuli through electroreception, which is a biological ability to detect objects and communicate through enigmatic, non-visible means.  

To me, she symbolizes intuition, magical connections and water wisdom. The deep spirituality of Aboriginal art inspired my depiction honoring this amazing creature.