Emily Dickinson's poem “Hope is the Thing with Feathers” imagines hope as a bird that lives inside our souls, who never stops singing even in the harshest of circumstances and in the most extreme of places, and never expects anything in return for its singing.   

I like to imagine this bird as something that’s marvelous to look at, with intricate detailing, awe-inspiring colors, and dynamic feathers, where gazing at it is a mystical experience. With paper quilling, I tried to emphasize this mesmerizing quality, where every feather is intricately folded in a specific pattern, and every shape flows into the next. 

Awarded Scholastic Gold Key for Mixed Media, PS Art Semifinalist
Displayed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art