Goddess painting of the day: the Valkyries

Are the Valkyries goddesses? Or are they supernatural warrior maidens? According to Norse mythology, they are dísir, or fate goddesses who served the ruling god Odin. Their main purpose was to choose the most heroic of those who had died in battle and to carry them off to Valhalla, where they became warriors to fight at Odin’s side at the preordained battle at the end of the world.

The most famous Valkryie is Brunnhilde, whose story I find particularly stirring. She offers a potent example of how love can inspire people to great deeds. It also serves as the linchpin for Wagner’s massive music drama, The Ring of the Nibelungen. Valkyries are also associated with ravens; some images show them as half-raven/half-woman, almost vulture-like in form as they swoop down to gather the dead.

My drawing depicts the Valkyries as they fly through the sky on their supernatural mounts, like thunder in the sky. Like the Muses, there are nine sister Valkyries (though that number varies in different myths); I’ve only drawn three of the Valkyries here, so I could focus more on the details — didn’t want to draw a crowd scene!

This drawing was created for Goddess Alive, a book I recently illustrated for Llewellyn Publications. I used pencil, white gouache on tinted paper. The book features 13 Celtic goddesses, each associated with the turn of the seasons and the phases of the moon.

Goddess Alive was recently published and can be ordered at amazon.com. If you decide to order it, autographed bookplates are available upon request.

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