Forever Beautiful (for Nathan)

This 3D piece has a bit of a backstory. When my son was quite young, he and I went to a bargain store here in Austin, Texas. It was near Christmas, I think. At any rate we found a small Santa head with requsite hat and faux fur. It was designed to hang on a tree and its placard read, 'Forever Beautiful.' It was a wee bit tacky and my son and I both laughed when we studied it. Of course, I bought it. It was only 99 cents. I think everything in that store was the same price. Anyway, when I bought my mortgage a few years later, i hung it outside on the porch so it could get the benefit of Central Texas weather. Whenever my son visited, he would study it and note its gradual deterioration. The light rosy pink flesh tones darkened and the cap and fake fur gradually fell away. A few years back, I took it down and put what was left of it in the garage. I recently rediscovered it there and thought I'd use it in a piece. This is the outcome. Using my special compound, it is 4.25 inches wide, 5.5 inches deep and 14 inches tall. I left it the color of the compound with a varnish that I tinted green and added to that a glow in the dark additive. Original Jones Art as it decomposes with slight luminescence in that wondrous city some call Austin, Texas.