chapter xv: the prophecy

In Lunar Faces | Feminine Divine, Diana has been a goddess that speaks to me personally throughout the whole series. Her relationship with Hecate and Luna to form a Triple Goddess is a powerful commentary of female friendships. All of them have some form of association with the moon and harnessing its power. They were a very easy choice to include in this series.

Diana is a goddess of the Roman Hellenistic religion. Together with Luna and Hecate, the three each represent a different aspect of Diana Triformis, the hunt, the moon, and the underworld. Diana quite literally translates into “goddess of the light and the moon”. She was a goddess that brought light into the darkness. She is so often associated with nature, fertility, and the moon. My goal with this piece was try to bring all of these aspects together as one work.

There are so many things to learn about this goddess but she really resonated with me in her connection to other goddesses. Bringing light into a dark place together, using the moon to light the way. The moon was such an important facet of this goddess that her inclusion in the series was automatic. She was also known for protecting those that could not protect themselves—whether it be animals or children. Diana Triformis is a powerful triple goddess who will never be alone in the work she does. 

I absolutely loved creating this piece. It was one that I truly sat down and made a plan, created a materials palette, and did practice sketches before jumping in to create the final product. I am enjoying the process of learning to be more organized, or at least making a game plan for a finished work. This way I have a better idea of what the final will look like when it finally comes to life. Whether it was the resin, the pastels, the ink, the oils, or wood carving—all of it was painstakingly planned out and practiced to make sure the best result would come about. I am so happy with the result and I cannot wait to continue on with this series.

chapter xiv: peace

Next up for lunar faces | feminine divine is Hanhepi Wi, also called Hanwi.  She is a moon goddess in Native North American religions, specifically among the Sioux and Lakota peoples. As a goddess of the moon she is intrinsically feminine and represents fertility, dreams, emotions, and transformations. She represents the rhythm of natural cycles. She is also the Goddess of motherhood, feminine power, and watches over women during their monthly cycle.

This was one of my favorite study sessions. Throughout this series, I’ve had friends and family pose as the goddess to give a more realistic body image and position. Through hanhepi I got to photograph a good friend while she was pregnant. It was a really beautiful moment and experience.

While researching this goddess I actually came across a lesson plan for Lakota elementary age students and it tells Hanwi’s story. It’s called “When the People Laughed at the Moon”. It’s a really powerful story, the main theme being jealousy. As a result the judgement given is the sun and moon can no longer share the same sky. If you’d like to read the lesson plan that shares the full story, check out https://www.wolakotaproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/01-Hanwi-Moon.pdf

Overall this piece was beautiful and powerful in the research but I found composing the work to be very difficult. So difficult that I put a pin in it to finish at a later time. Later turned out to be 2 years. In the end I’m glad I paused and came back to it because the finished product is so much better.

chapter xii: evermore

Next in my lunar faces | feminine divine series is Anahita.

Anahita was known as the Lady of the Waters and goddess of fertility, worshipped in what’s known today as Iran. At the time, it was the Persian Empire and she was one of the most revered deities of the ancient religions. She is described as a beautiful maiden, strong, tall and pure. She is depicted as wearing a mantle embroidered with gold. As her popularity spread, she picked up attributes to other goddesses of the regions she was brought to, soon becoming associated with the moon.

This is where she crossed into my research. So many of the moon goddesses also have water associations which I find to be incredibly fascinating as the moon has such strong effects on the tides.

Anahita in particular with her strong associations with purity and water led me to create this piece. Bringing forward that regal grace and giving her the pitcher of water she is so often said to be associated with. I loved creating a meteor shower type event with this background while still allowing the moon to be super prominent. I hope you enjoy her as much as I do.

chapter xi: long live

One of my biggest struggles with this process has been finding source material to research and understand the lore behind each goddess. The problem is some of them are so ancient that they existed at a time when their stories were told instead of written. This goddess is an example of that.

Chin in the mythology of the Muysca Indians of Bogotá, Colombia, is a moon goddess representing the power of female destructiveness. This attribute immediately sparked my interest— that powerful description of the goddess and her moon. While I have not found source material I’ve seen many descriptions of her and her lore. In one myth she was credited with flooding the earth when she was displeased. In order to appease her, men would dress up in women’s clothes and perform women’s duties in the hope that the goddess would not punish them for being men.  In other texts or descriptions she was the goddess of maize, magic, and a councilor to the kings. She was also closely associated with homo-erotic relationships and homosexuality.

The research on these goddesses has been both frustrating and fascinating. Learning about different early civilizations, especially those within the Americas is just incredibly cool. A lot of my early education focused mostly on the Mayans, Aztecs, and Incas. Through this research I’ve learned there were so many more. And past that, the discovery of the rituals and attributes that they associated with the moon and the goddess just made creating this piece so much more meaningful.

chapter x: the alchemy

I’m back into the studio and with that comes jumping into my series, Lunar Faces | Feminine Divine which I wrote about in my last post. Through this series I’ve been exploring the connections between feminine deities and the moon. Each piece in this series is a tribute to a goddess whose influence is intertwined with lunar symbolism. Among these divine figures, Al-Uzza stood out to me as a powerful embodiment of both female strength and the moon’s cycles.

Al-Uzza is a goddess whose name means “The Mighty One”. In pre-Islamic Arabia, she was revered as a protector, a deity of war, and a symbol of power. Her influence was especially strong among the Quraysh tribe of Mecca, there is even said to be a temple that was dedicated to her in Petra. Al-Uzza wasn’t just a distant figure; she was deeply involved in the lives of her followers, offering them the strength and protection they needed in times of conflict and uncertainty. Oftentimes coming through the acacia trees outside her temple. Al-Uzza is said to be the goddess of the morning and evening stars and also to have ruled over heaven.  Together with two other deities, Menat, and Al-Lat, they created the three goddesses worshipped as a triad. Some speculate that she started to become associated with the moon when Arabian myths blended with Grecian mythologies.

What drew me to include Al-Uzza in Lunar Faces | Feminine Divine was that intriguing connection. Although she is primarily associated with power and protection, there are hints in ancient traditions that suggest she may also be linked to celestial phenomena, most likely Venus, the morning star. But with the moon’s symbolism of change, cycles, and renewal it seems to resonate with Al-Uzza’s own attributes, making her a perfect figure to explore in this series. Through this connection, she embodies both the unyielding strength of a warrior and the subtle, cyclical power of the moon.

In Lunar Faces | Feminine Divine, I’ve sought to capture the essence of these goddesses, blending their divine attributes with the timeless symbolism of the moon. Al-Uzza, with her dual aspects of power and lunar mystery, is a compelling figure whose influence spans both the earthly and the celestial. Through this artwork, I aim to bring her story to life, allowing her strength and the moon’s quiet power to shine.

Follow along as I finish and post about all the goddesses I’ve found that are associated with the moon. The research alone has been quite the journey. Feel free to comment who you’d like to see next!