Observations: Come to the butterfly ball
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.What do Kate Winslet, Ricky Gervais and Tony Blair have in common? Aside from a propensity for making embarrassing speeches, that is. The answer, unexpectedly, lies with butterflies.
They are among 80 artists, designers, writers and politicians who have contributed to The Butterfly Book, a charity art book in aid of Leukaemia Research.
Winslet drew a "butterfly person", inspired by her daughter Mia, while Gervais, drawing on his Flanimals cartoons, provided a bigger, hairier version. Blair sent in a silk butterfly plucked from a display at an official dinner. Among the artists, Grayson Perry has dreamed up a typically outrageous killer insect with swastikas on its wings and nipple piercings (yes, his butterflies have nipples) while Cornelia Parker created a Rorschach blot of a butterfly using snake venom for ink. Other contributors, from a wide field, include Gavin Turk, Manolo Blahnik, Ewan McGregor, Maggi Hambling, Matthew Williamson, Alan Ayckbourn, and Quentin Blake.
Alongside the £25 hardback book there are also 70 limited-edition books for sale which come with one of the original artworks inside, costing £100. The artworks are pre-sealed and there is no way of choosing: like the popular Royal Academy postcard exhibition, it's a case of lucky dip, meaning you could end up with a £100 Peter Blake bargain or, less luckily, a doodle from Ann Widdecombe.
Among the non-visual contributions, Lembit Opik has written a verse comparing the flight of the butterfly to the unpredictability of life, Jeffrey Archer sent in an ode written by somebody else (plus ça change) and Jeanette Winterson summed up the transient appeal of the most beautiful – and rapidly disappearing – of insects with a poem: "I love them because they are so brief and so beautiful. A line of poetry. A run of colour. A bar of music. Gone."
www.thebutterflybook.co.uk
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments