Maria’s long-awaited Raven fiber hanging piece went up for sale on her Etsy Page today. It costs $450 plus $20 shipping and is “40” by “44.”

Maria spent a year studying ravens, and her thinking and talking about this piece infected me with the Raven virus. The Raven went deep into her very active imagination. That’s how art is born.

I’ve read three studies of this remarkable and unique creature, believed to be the most intelligent bird on the planet and the most mystical, talked about, written about, and studied bird in America.

I’m hooked.

I congratulated Maria on this beautiful work and one of her very best. It has all of its own energy. And she added the colorful mushrooms because she saw them and the Ravens in the woods together when she walked.

The mushrooms are taken from her photographic series on them. They got into her head as well.

The flying Raven up on top of the hanging piece was taken from a photograph she took of a raven flying overhead. The ravens around us appear every morning to talk to one another and perhaps listen to us.

They seem to always be around.

I told Maria this was new territory for her and me.

I said I believe in the Raven’s power; I’ve read too many stories not to. They know what is happening around them and who the people are who live near them.

“This Raven,” I said, “will decide where it wants to go, nobody else.”

She wrote about an unusual and unprecedented experience with her work. Yesterday, four people messaged her to say they very much wanted the Raven, but then, back to back, all four backed out suddenly and for good and practical reasons, said Maria.

But this had never happened to her; the effect was a little dizzying—a Raven experience.

This rang a bunch of bells for me – this is Raven stuff; it happens all around them, that’s like the stories I’m reading in my books.

Ravens are complex, just like people. They seem to have some power over people at certain times and in specific ways.

Edgar Allen Poe thought they represented death, but the people who love and study them say they represent love, determination, and strength. I’m with the “determined” people. Ravens don’t quit. They are solid and focused.

After reading about the Ravens so much, I wasn’t surprised by some mischief around the piece. I’m generally not into the psychic study of animals, but Ravens make things happen for their reasons, some that can be understood, some that can’t.

The proper owner of this compelling piece will want to get it, and the Raven will decide to make it happen.

I  can’t explain it; I feel it in my bones. This is the most striking piece yet from Maria; it says much about where art comes from and how it connects with our mystical, spiritual, and artistic parts.

The Raven in Maria’s hanging piece has a lot of spirit and hope; I can see it in her eyes.

Before selling this piece, Maria instantly sold out her 12 Raven potholders on Etsy and from her blog..

My favorite Raven study is in a book by Bernd Heinrich, a biologist at the University of Vermont. He took some Raven eggs from a nest and raised them himself, feeding them, studying them, and taking notes about them.

His academic study, Mind Of A Raven, is hypnotic for me. He said the Ravens did things he never imagined they could do and knew things he never suspected any bird could know. His account is thorough and detailed in the way of academics.

I am very interested in the Raven’s mind and eager to see where this very original and spiritual piece of Maria’s goes to live. As always, I am proud of Maria; I know what it took to finish this piece.

I will be learning more, for sure.

You can read about the Raven piece on Maria’s blog, http://www.fullmoonfiberart.com, or e-mail her at [email protected]. You can also see or purchase the work on her Etsy page right here.