“Vanitas vanitatum, omnia vanitas.”
An ambitious collaboration between three artists, the Hunter's Feast silk scarf is a dedication to Baroque era Dutch and Flemish vanitas and opulent memento mori hunting still life paintings, featuring artwork by painter and illustrator Fyodor Pavlov, book conservator and paper marbler Abra Mueller, and myself, illustrator Logan Spector of Logandria.
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At the very center of the scarf, Fyodor Pavlov sets the scene for the sumptuous aftermath of a great hunt. Strung up alongside freshly caught pheasants and a hare hangs a bound young woman, tumbling auburn hair perfectly matching the auburn fur of the doe, two creatures united in their fate and purpose.
Surrounding the game animals is a banquet of other luxuries: a wilting bouquet of Semper Augustus tulips, famous as the most expensive tulip variety at the height of Dutch Tulip Mania, rare imported fruits, a haunch of venison and a rack of ribs, an ornate nautilus cup full of wine, and acorns and oysters, two foods believed by the ancient Romans to improve the taste of whatever animal they are fed to.
This painting was an extensive labor of sketching, refining, inking, and the slow and delicate process of gradually building up color and detail through innumerable layers of watercolor washes. A full dive into Fyodor's process for this painting (and much more of his gorgeous work -- much too risqué to be shared elsewhere on the internet -- can be found on
his Patreon.
Encompassing the Fyodor's painting are three layers of lush custom marbled papers created by book conservator and professional marbler, Abra Mueller. The colors and patterns of the marbling build upon the narrative themes in the painting: deep red blood flowing from a wound, the mossy carpet upon which the doe might have lain at the end of her life, and diluted blood flowing across a damp forest floor.
For this project, Abra marbled nearly a dozen sheets of paper to my color and pattern specifications, varying the color ratios on each sheet. This allowed me to choose the papers most perfectly suited to each section of the scarf -- and left me with a wonderful collection of decorative papers to use in future crafting projects!
Surrounding everything is a Sansovino-style giltwood frame, illustrated by myself, on which the scene of a hunt plays out across intricately carved and gilded wood.
Hounds at the beck and call of their master charge through acanthus scroll underbrush, seeking the scent of their master’s quarry, be it the elusive fox, the stag, or the hapless and helpless damsel let loose on vast hunting grounds.
The style of frame illustrated here is inspired by a popular style of early Baroque era Italian frame, named after architect and sculptor Jacopo Sansovino. The highly decorative frames are most often characterized by elaborate scrollwork, figures, botanical and animal elements, and plenty of gold leaf.
With such a wealth of inspiration to build on, sketching out the design for the frame was a delight. While my illustration work is almost always created on a digital canvas, it's the sketchbook ideation that I enjoy the most.
(As a reminder, those that wish to see a detailed look at the process behind all of my scarves may wish to become a member of
my Patreon.)
This project began in 2023, and I'm so pleased to finally be able to release it now. It was a true pleasure to work with Fyodor and Abra, and I couldn't be more thrilled with what we created together.
As beautiful as this illustration is on a screen, it's even more glorious on silk.
If you'd like a Hunter's Feast scarf of your own, you can find them here later this month. This illustration is limited to an edition of only 200 silk scarves released in 2025 and will never be reprinted.
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