NEW~~~Daughter of the Moon A beaded story-sphere This work tells the story, (albeit abbreviated) of the destruction tale of Norse mythology. I find creation myths and destruction myths fascinating. In this tale, things begin with the Norns, as many things in Norse myth do. The Norns are fate spinners. There were many norns in Norse myth, but three are most often referenced. These three are the ones who care for Yggdrasil, the World Tree (or Tree of Life). They are comparable to the Fates in Greek myth, and to the three witches in MacBeth who have the gift of prophecy. They have other parallels in other cultures as well (the Triple Goddesses in Celtic myth, etc) The norns hold the fate of every living thing (human, animal and gods and goddesses) in their hands by means of threads. They weave and interweave these threads across the river of time to spin the cloth of life. When they cut your thread, you die. The norns are represented here in photo #1 by a beautiful clay face swathed in snowy white Shibori silk. The face was hand crafted by artist Jeanie Mossa of Planet Calamari Studios. The Norns have decreed that one day, the earth as we know it shall end, and be wiped almost clean, to sink beneath the sea and then arise again, newly born and pristine, to start a new cycle of time. In Norse myth, this is brought about by Ragnorak, the Twilight of the gods. There are many signs leading up to Ragnorak, which can be compared to the Christian Armageddon. The first is the Fimbulwinter, a three year period of intense cold and ice with no summer in between. During this time there will be wars, plagues and famine. Three red roosters will alert the gods in Asgard, the dead in Nieflheim, and the Jotuns (giants) that Ragnorak is come. The Fimbulwinter is represented by the color scheme of this work…the pure white and sparkling crystals of snow, and the greys and blacks of winter. Hati and Skoll, the two fierce wolves whose daily chase of the Moon (Mani) and the Sun (Sol) across the sky brings us the cycle of night and day, will finally catch them and devour them, and the earth will be plunged into darkness and cold. The dying sun is represented here by a beautiful vintage Swarovski rivoli crystal in the color Seal encased in a net of grey faceted Charlotte beads, and a lovely vintage Swarovski rose cut stone in Starlight represents the doomed moon, image #2. The earth will shake, time will begin running backward, and from the blackest depths of the ocean the Midgard serpent, Iormagund (the snake with amber eyes) will arise to do battle with Thor, the Thundergod (image #3, represented by a genuine pewter artist rendering of the Midgard serpent, crafted in Norway and signed Tinn-Per by the artist). Thor will kill the serpent, but will also be killed. The Fenrir wolf, (father of Hati and Skoll and one of the children of Loki, the trickster god) will break his chains and kill Odin, the Father of the Gods. The Destroyer of the Universe, the Fire Giant Surtur, will wield a flaming sword and set the Nine Worlds aflame (rivers of flame represented here by pathways of metallic coppery/gold beading). The Nine Worlds will die and sink into the sea, but from that destruction, a new world will arise, for sheltering in the boughs of the great tree of life Yggdrasil, a man (Liftraser) and a woman (Lif) will survive the destruction, as will the two sons of Thor (Modi and Magni) and the sons of Odin (Vidar and Vali). Also surviving will be the Daughter of the Moon, here represented by a lovely up cycled vintage pewter and rhinestone studded pin (image #4). Together with the child of the sun (a beautiful vintage Swarovski rose cut stone in Ceylon Topaz, flashing colors of gold, pink) the world will be repopulated. New life will arise (represented in image 5 by the beautiful gold plated dragonfly stamping, the Czech glass and pewter butterflies and flowers) and the world clock will begin spinning forward once again. As is time, the story on this work is a circle, without beginning or end. The piece was hand sewn from white Ultra suede, hand stuffed with Fiberfill, hand embellished with Shibori silk, and hand beaded. No machines were used in the construction. This is a soft sculpture, approximately 90 hours of work were consumed in its making.
Posted on: Sun, 11 Jan 2015 19:14:33 +0000
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