The inspiration for Divine Things came to me one summer on Martha’s Vineyard. The island is wrapped in a wild, raw beauty. There are images of mermaids everywhere.  Lying on the beach, it’s not hard to imagine a secret world beneath the waves.

 The mermaid in the illustration is a metaphor for the exquisiteness that so often lives below the surface. It takes an open mind and heart to discern it. But then again, sometimes all it takes is just looking……

I took this picture of my daughter Bridget on Martha’s Vineyard, around the time she posed for the illustration. She is a mermaid of the landlocked variety. For more information on mermaids check out my friend Margot Datz’s A Survival Guide for Landlocked Mermaids  

All text and images © Sue Shanahan. All rights reserved.