This piece was created for the January 2005 nibblefest contest theme fairy tales. This stylized work depicts Rumpelstiltskin, the strange little man who offers a miller's daughter the ability to spin straw into gold in exchange for her first-born son. I chose this subject because of issues concerning giving away a child that have impacted my own experiences and the metaphorical possibilities attached to "spinning straw into gold." The composition of the painting was built on the "opening A" string figure, the first step in the game of cat's cradle.