Flowers for Ardis — This major cue has been named after the artist’s wife who passed away in 2020 after 54 wonderful, devoted years of marriage. Her unusual name is Latin means “passionate interests".

The design was originally crafted by renowned artist Sandra Brady who is best known for her extraordinary scrimshaw work but has also won recognition for her original art quilts. Well-known pool cue purveyor William Grassley saw the design sketch in her shop some ten years earlier and when he recently visited, he saw it again and asked about it. They shared a lengthy conversation about having the design used for a pool cue design and who should be selected to do the work into a piece of functional art. Richard Black was unquestionably the obvious choice and the design was photographed and forwarded to Richard.

The first thing Richard said when he saw the design was “Please tell me this is not some other cue makers’ design” because Richard does not copy others’ work. The two artists entered into a collaboration agreement and the project was underway.

Richard had a customer/collector in mind for the project and as they discussed it, they both agreed that Richard’s deceased wife would have loved the floral motif and felt the cue should be dedicated to her. Richard’s high standards required that nothing, but the best materials would be used for this major piece of functional art.

The roses are constructed from a bright red veneer, one of Richard's favorite materials. The irises are from a purple stabilized stone. The stems are crafted from 18-karat yellow gold. Three large sections of ivory have been used to construct the entire butt section of the cue from material that Richard aged for decades, just waiting for the right project.

Sandra is best known for her full-color wildlife scrimshaw art, but like many artists, she likes to try out a variety of mediums and subject matter to expand her artistic abilities. This design has an Art Deco feel and that is what she was going for. Several color options were tried out before the final color choices were picked. Additionally, Sandra used a new type of artist paint to add a special sparkle to the flowers. Though originally sketched for a quilted wall hanging, to be made one day in the future, the design translated very well into a functional art cue.