First, there was the business of hearts. Hearts are not to be taken lightly. They never are: hearts can be broken, lost, found, and mended. Always pay attention to who and what you love!

I started creating a light box image shaped liked the cliche Hallmark heart (perhaps I’ll post this larger image in the due fullness of time). Then, thanks to serendipity, I noticed a small Tulip petal roughly shaped like a heart. I played with the small petal heart, placing it on top and internally in relation to the larger heart composition.

Finally, it occurred to me to get out a macro lens, and photograph the petal on its own. Clearly, the resulting petal heart shape—or was it a sweater?— needed a zipper. I had to oblige. Phyllis helped me find a zipper from a sewing supply catalog, we pinned it to a white foamcore board in roughly the shape of the zipper in the finished image you see, and I photographed the zipper, push-pins and all.

Next, I combined the petal heart image with the zipper image in Photoshop. The result, in my Impossible Images series, is sort of my answer to the so-called “artificial intelligence” image creation craze: by hand, in digital post-production, using layers and masking, the old-fashioned way!

Note: There is an Easter Egg in the image. Can you find it?