Arcane Harvest

I worked on the new color art last night. I wish I had scanned the ones I'd finished before painting on the black background. I'll have to remember that next time. Of course I can go into PS and take the black bg out! I keep forgetting I can do about anything in photoshop.

This one is Sky Snakes. I did it last month. Because I am so into snakes, and snake totems, and "my" adopted gaboon, Kenya, who lives (and is owned) by the Memphis zoo, I wanted to combine that snake energy with the stars. I am so interested in learning about the sky and our cosmos. So it facinates me that, no matter what happens here on earth, the stars are the same. The seasons stay the same, the sun rises and sets "on time," and the moon follows an ancient schedule. I can look in my witch's almanac and it will tell me what the moon will be doing for the entire year, as well as the sun, and what signs it will be in, what planets are retrograde, when the moon will be void of course, etc etc. And my astronomy books tell me where Orion will be according to the month(s).
And then there's the snake energy. The snake symbolizes eternal life, because it sheds its skin and then appears to be "new" again. I can form a circle, representing eternal life or infinite time. Also, the snake is a silent hunter and never blinks, yet can be at rest. It can sit completely still for hours and hours. It's cold blooded and has to take care of itself according to the seasons. There's symbolism in all of these attributes. So I love how the stars and the snake can represents "the eternal".

I'm also working on the heart motif. I don't know why, exactly, but I do know there is a heart nebula in Cassiopeia. And I was just reading something Joseph Campbell said about the heart, but at this moment can't think of it. I'll write it down later.