"Pagoda on Lake" Kite by Michael Thompson

Chicago-based artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites crafted from split bamboo frames covered with stretched muslin and a collage of vintage Asian ephemera—including fragments of fabric, scrolls, drawings, and books collected during his travels. In “Pagoda on Lake,” Thompson honors the practice of contrasting verdant, untamed terrains with built architectural elements. Like a lake lapping at a shore, a wash of indigo pools at the center of the kite, the flowing waters interrupted by a plane of neatly ordered calligraphy. A broad brushstroke sweeps across the piece with a gestural curve, mirroring the pagodas pictured in the landscape painting above.

Thompson has earned an international reputation for his kite works, an engrossing project initiated by the artist more than a decade ago.