Goddess painting of the day: Sekhmet, a detail

Sekhmet, the Egyptian goddess of war and vengence, is painted here in her traditional lioness form. I’ve often felt a bit intimidated by her fiery intensity — hopefully this painting conveys some of her powerful energy. Her chariot is drawn by three cobras, a symbol of magical transformation and sovereignty; appropriately, the uraeus, a crown worn in ancient Egypt, takes its form from the cobra.

This art excerpted from a painting (below) that I created for Shamanic Mysteries of Egypt, a book recently published by Inner Traditions and authored by Nicki Scully and Linda Star Wolf. I used watercolor, gouache and pencil for it.

The gods depicted below Sekhmet are Horus, Khnum and Sobek. This particular composition was received in a vision by Star Wolf; I did my best to hew as closely as possible to her description. I also incorporated aspects of ancient Egyptian art in a respectful manner in my presentations of the deities, decorative elements and borders. It was fun but challenging experience.

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Goddess drawing of the day: Danu

This is yet another drawing that I recently created for Goddess Alive, a book I recently illustrated for Llewellyn Publications. It depicts Danu, the Celtic sovereign goddess associated with water, river and wells. Indeed, many believe that the beautiful blue Danube takes its name from this goddess.

In my drawing, which was created with pencil and white gouache on tinted paper, I’ve chosen to depict Danu’s aquamarine origins. She is literally within and of water itself, a shimmering chimera that can emerge any moment from watery depths to grant a boon. The salmon in the foreground suggests the deep wisdom that this goddess offers; the salmon is a traditional Celtic symbol of knowledge gained in a supernatural manner.

Goddess Alive features 13 Celtic goddesses, each associated with the turn of the seasons and the phases of the moon. It will be published next month but is now available for preorder at amazon.com. If you decide to order it, autographed bookplates are available upon request.

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Goddess painting of the day: Hathor

Last week when I recounted my recent trip to Brandywine, I did not mention another stop we took along the way. And it was a wonderful one!

We were fortunate to obtain tickets to the highly popular Tutankhamun and the Golden Age exhibit at the Franklin Institute. It is from this exhibit that I draw inspiration for today’s Goddess painting of the day, Hathor.

Hathor, as the goddess of beauty, prosperity and all good things, was honored as the Golden One — an appropriate title for a deity concerned with the good life. She was usually depicted with the form of a cow, which is how she is presented here. Her traditional rites often included libations of milk offered to the fertile soil. In this particular painting, the god painted her side is Anubis, who serves as the gatekeeper to the heart; Hathor is invoking him with her magical sistern and chants.

This art excerpted from a painting (below) that I created for Shamanic Mysteries of Egypt, a book recently published by Inner Traditions. I used watercolor, gouache and pencil to make it.

The other gods and goddesses in the painting are Wadjet, Anubis and Set. This particular composition was seen in a vision by Linda Star Wolf, who authored the book along with Nicki Skully; I tried to hew as closely as possible to Star Wolf’s description, which was divinely inspired. Ancient Egyptian art was also an inspiration — I did my best to respectfully incorporate its traditional imagery.

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Goddess drawing of the day: Aine

Happy June! To commemorate the beginning of this month, I present to you Aine, the Celtic goddess of light and magic, whom some consider the faery queen. She is associated with Midsummer Night, the shortest — and most magical — of evenings.

Depicting Aine presented me with an interesting case. This is the second time I’ve illustrated this goddess. Previously, I painted a miniature of Aine for the anniversary edition of The Book of Goddesses; it shows her crowned by the moon and sun, suggesting her role as an intermediary between light and dark. But this drawing emphasizes Aine’s more ethereal aspect. Though I did not depict her with faery wings, there’s definitely more than a bit of the fae about her. It greatly helped that I had a fantastic model who personified many of these mercurial qualities as she posed for me.

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 will be published next month and is now available for preorder at amazon.com. If you decide to order it, autographed bookplates are available upon request.

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goddess painting of the day: Iduna

This painting of Iduna was originally created for a book that has yet to come to fruition — maybe one day. But I liked it so much that I decided to include it in the new edition of The Book of Goddesses.

Here’s some information about this lovely goddess. The Norse honored Iduna as the goddess responsible for growing apples, which were eaten by the gods and goddesses to retain their youth and beauty. Iduna grew the golden apples of immortality in her enchanted western garden named Appleland; in the stories of King Arthur, Appleland was called Avalon—the idyllic country of immortal life. Iduna was renowned for her youthful beauty, and was married to Bragi, the handsome god of poetry.

This painting was created with watercolors, gouache, powdered pigments, and even a bit of oil paint — it was a complicated and experimental effort, in other words. Basically, I was trying to see how far I could push my technique. BTW, the runic alphabet at the top of the border spells out phonetically “Iduna Goddess.”

 

It also graced the cover of the catalog  for my recent exhibition at the New York Open Center. If you’re interested, copies of the book are available for purchase; e-mail me your receipt and I’ll even send you an autographed bookplate.

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