Matt Shanks: Small adventures in words and pictures
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Iskra Vidnayev paints

In a dimly lit room, in a smoke-filled house, in a rainy cobble-stone street in a sleepy Russian township called Kratkovo, Iskra Vidneyev painted. She spent her days and nights obsessively beautifying the river tortoises she would find during her daily walks. Once a year, she would parade her proudest creation through town for all to see. This year, it was Yuri. Yuri was older than most but his shell reflected the pigments with a brilliance not even Iskra had seen before. He had never ventured beyond the river bank until now. All of a sudden, Yuri froze, filled with nervous anticipation. Iskra turned and assured him that all would be well but he couldn’t help but think, “Is this the life for me?”

Artist notes: Iskra's obsession with painting river tortoises came to me one day when I was sitting on the couch randomly sketching turtles. I started to put intricate patterns on shells and I was reminded of my own grandma who used to where those silk scarves with beautiful patterns of them.