"Joie de Vivre" 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 this kite entitled "Joie de Vivre," Thompson creates a delicate composition from antique wallpaper and vintage print ephemera. Arranged at the center are several black and white prints of fine Chinese porcelains, enclosed by a makeshift border as though the viewer is peering through a window at a fine parlor or tea shop. The surreal interior setting is surrounded with layered paper fragments in a neutral palette of green and off-white, slightly yellowed in keeping with the vintage feel.

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

Split bamboo, muslin, found paper, fabric, pigments.