Art, Spirit, and Wonder: Finding the Sacred Through Art​

Art History tells the story of humanity. Here we'll look at how Paganism has been viewed in art through the ages; into the ancient past, the Renaissance and other eras, and how artists are exploring Paganism today.

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Helena

Helena

Helena Domenic has been an art history nerd for her entire life, having toured the Sistine Chapel at the age of eighteen months. She never quite recovered from that experience (thankfully) and has been seeking out the sacred and profane in art ever since. She's even a real-life art history professor at a Pennsylvania university. She is also a Tarot nerd, having created her own Tarot deck, the Fellowship of the Fool.
May the Peace of the Goddess Be Upon You: A Goddess for These Times

The Goddess I have decided to discuss this week is the Roman Goddess Pax. As you can see in my contemporary rendering of her, she is often depicted with an olive branch, a cornucopia (peace brings abundance), and a dove. In this time of fear and panic, we especially need her now to remind us that even if the world around us is filled with hate and rage, we can look within for peace, and we have someone upon whom we can call for that peace.

In Roman times, the term "Pax Roman" referred to the 'peace' brought by Roman colonization. In 19 BC, the Ara Pacis (Altar of Peace) was dedicated by the Emperor Augustus to celebrate his return from Hispania, and reflects the Augustan religion in Roman culture. 

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  • Helena
    Helena says #
    Thanks so much!!! Awesome to see you too!!
  • Catharine Clarenbach
    Catharine Clarenbach says #
    Hello, Helena! Qira Clarenbach (originally from Four Quarters) -- so delicious to find you here. I hope to read much and much more

Posted by on in Studies Blogs
Goddesses and Resistance: Why I Paint

Today I posted on my Facebook page that between scary changes at my workplace and the current national events, it was taking every ounce of energy I have not to run screaming into the streets. I am not alone in feeling this way as numerous friends “liked” my status and numerous more made comments to the same affect. It is indeed exhausting to watch the new US government play itself out on social media, and can make one’s soul very bone weary. My situation is not unique. Indeed, I fear I am even turning into a broken record here on this blog, but please bear with me. A glance at Facebook will guide you to numerous articles about the importance of self-care in such dire times. I have wondered what I, an arthritic fifty-something art professor at a university with declining enrollment can do to make my voice heard amongst the many others resisting the new regime’s policies and proposed changes, and I’ve figured that the most important thing I can do is keep making art.

 

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The Very Fine Art of Protest

The Art of Protest and Protest Art

Get Up, Stand Up
Stand Up For Your Rights
Get Up, Stand Up
Don’t Give Up the Fight
- Peter Tosh

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  • Dragon Dancer
    Dragon Dancer says #
    Desperately needed sentiment and powerful artwork! Thank you for sharing, for encouraging.
  • Helena
    Helena says #
    Thank you so much!

Posted by on in Studies Blogs
Reflections on 2016: Life, Death, Netflix and Hope

Reflections on 2016: Life, Death, Netflix and Hope

I confess that although I did not write a great deal in this blog in 2016, there were certainly plenty of things going on in my life and in my world. It would be an easy way out to say that the events of this year simply rendered me speechless, and I doubt that there would be many who would argue with me on that. Personally, I hit many milestones and manifested a number of things I had been hoping to achieve. However, the harbingers of doom and despair came in the form of the deaths of many artists who influenced my life, and the lives of many others.

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A Polymorphous Perverse Journey

Years ago, when I was much younger, I read Rita Mae Brown's Ruby Fruit Jungle, where I first learned the tern "polymorphous perverse." At the time, I thought it was a term created by the author to describe her emergent sexuality, and I always thought perhaps the term applied to me as a polyamorous, bi, pagan female. It wasn't until years later that I learned the term was actually coined by Freud to denote people who are able to find sexual gratification outside of accepted societal norms. I was elated to learn that the term could still apply to me, which is why I've decided to use it to name the oracle deck I've been creating.

(By the way, I was gone for awhile. Did you miss me? I've had my head buried in projects like these! I'm back to tell you all about them). 

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Blessed Imbolg! Blessed Brighid!

The holiday that is known both by Brighid and by Imbolg has long been a favorite of mine. I adore the thought of all those sleepy little seeds under the surface of the earth getting ready to move upwards towards the sun in the depths of winter. The painting that accompanies this blog post is one from a few years ago that I did of the Goddess Brighid. I have often seen her as a young, joyful woman, bursting forth in flame. I find that I wish to paint her again as my image of her has matured as I have matured. 

 

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An Open Letter to the City of Philadelphia and the Mummers

 

(Author’s note: For those of you unfamiliar with this particular Philadelphia tradition, you can find information about it here: http://www.phillymummers.com). Because mumming is a tradition that arose out of European Pagan folk practices beginning with the Swedes and Finns who first settled in the area, I felt an especial need to address this years’ parade.

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  • Lizann Bassham
    Lizann Bassham says #
    Thank you for this column - 2015 was indeed been a year of seeing the realities of homophobia, transphobia, racism, and misogyny -
  • Helena
    Helena says #
    Oh I sure hope so!

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