Blue Moon

Tonight, Dear Cherubs, is a very special full moon.  It's the blue moon! This is the moon of magic and wishes. Made even more special due to the fact it is the last one until 2015.

Blue moons occur every two to three years due to the "left over days" form the solar calender. (leap year anyone?)

Traditions all around the world  view this moon as special (except Christians who call it the betrayers moon since it came "too early" for Lent. Really, guys? Really?)

The moon of course isn't going to be blue (though that would be awesome) Since it is atmospheric pollution like dust that would cause the change, i.e. like in 1883 when Krakatoa erupted all moons where literally blue for two years.

Now, the blue moon that should be really fun is in 2028. It falls on New Years Eve and is a full lunar eclipse, imagine the craziness!!

It's seen as the moon of wishes. It is said that what you wish for on the blue moon is sure to come true. So, Dear Cherubs, take stock of your life and use that wish wisely.

St. Cecilia by Bernardo Cavallino

Bernardo Cavallino was born in Naples in 1616 and is thought to have died of the plague somewhere around 1656. Almost nothing is known of his background or training and it is hard to pinpoint if the many paintings attributed to him are his as less than 10 are signed. His work is noted for it's intense expressive religious allegory. The most famous example is probably the Blessed Virgin.

This painting however, is St. Cecilia. Patron saint of musicians and church music because it is said she sang to God as she died, which is impressive after a botched beheading.
Not to mention them trying to steam her to death. Why is the martyrs always seemed to get the horrific deaths? Don't just shoot them or anything. (Ooooo sorry St. Sebastian)

My crappy photo taken this year at the MFA. The security guard noticed my delight when I found her and tried to see what the hell I was looking at, lol.

This painting is probably one of my most favorite in the Museum of Fine Arts Boston. (Here on out known as the MFA). You can see my crummy photo here. Since the MFA hasn't completed their renovations they have her tucked away in a temporary gallery hiiiiiiiiiiigh up on the wall. I took it with max zoom. Fortunately, I was able to find on the MFA website a professional photo for your enjoyment.

This is the MFA's professional pic, I found it at  http://educators.mfa.org/galleries/slideshow/1352

What strikes me so about this work is the composition. The blood red scarf flowing around her obviously aloft on the holy energy her music is producing as she channels Gods favor. Wrapping around her, it continuously moves you back to her serene and beautiful face.

Without the scarf, this could be called "Young Girl Playing the Violin" it would be a typical genre piece and like many others that fade into historical obscurity. But this is no ordinary young girl. This is a holy woman. God's chosen saint. A martyr. She plays music for the soul. Even the light that pours on her is from above and left, not humble earthly light, as from a candle but God's own light.
St. Cecilia playing her violin is a holy act and we are privileged to witness the ritual.

Ode to a Still Life

So I had been working on this still life. Still lives get a bad rap in the world for being rather generic, and I could go into the history of Dutch genre painting and the role still lives played therein. That will have to wait for another day.

Still lives are a great tool for an artist to use. They are still, free models the artist can use to flex their muscles. A still life can be explored for a long time and still not exhaust the possibilities of composition and light. Setting up a still life isn't taken lightly. You have to put in  a variety of elements in order to create a sustainable interest. Should it be monotone or a riot of colors? How about textures? the possibilities are truly endless.

This sketch was done over another in progress abstract  I was bored with. I may not do anything like that again as the strong blues interrupted the coloring of the mask and cloth, but it can be good to let go of control from time to time.

The Hand of Fatima (hamsa)

Hamsas I made to sell on Etsy.

I recently found (in Oklahoma, of all places.) some charms like this and decided to decorate them. I instantly recognized them as the Hand of Fatima. But honestly I didn’t know what the Hand symbolizes. So I decided to do a little digging.

The hand of Fatima also known as the Hand of Mary or the Hand of Miriam depending on your religious leanings, I believe it’s proper name is the Hamsa.

It is a symbol of protection. Thought to be potent defense against the evil eye. But the hand itself is an ancient an universal symbol of protection attributed to Inana, Ishtar, Venus even the Buddha whose mudras are seen mirrored by none other than Christ himself.

I found this rockin' Hamsa on google images

         In earlier times it not only represented protection from the evil eye it also served to promote fertility and easy pregnancies, which maybe why it almost always is associated with Goddesses of the loving arts.

         Often seen in jewelry, it is also painted on doors and walls or hung up as tapestry and charms.

The hand is associated with the number 5. Five fingers. Five is a blessed number in ancient times denoting blessings, power and strength. The opened hand wards off evil and the closed hand with palm up denotes blessings and teachings.

The eye in the middle of the hand is also a universal symbol of protection against the evil eye or evil in general. The eye symbolism gets me because of my love for Medusa. Who legends it’s theorized evolved from the corpses of dead sailors and devices used to keep crows away. (Nice mix there. I’ll explain that in another post)

Ancient scarecrows and even some today are little more than an eye like object that reflects the sun.

It makes me wonder how much of our world beliefs and habits are based on simple everyday things like keeping birds from your food.