Tuesday, January 12, 2010

The Heart of the Labyrinth-Kim's contribution to Lisa's Book

From ancient Greece...




in an age of myths and legends...





From a time when there existed mythical beasts...




fair maidens...





and heros ...





comes a tale of deceit and forbidden love.












Enter the labyrinth...





and beware of what dwells within.







Lisa's book for the Pulp Redux collaboration is themed Labyrinth. I must admit the theme sparked off so many ideas I had trouble settling on just one, so in true women's fashion decided to do two! After all two must be better then one right! Right! LOL!


The first part of my contribution outlines the ancient Greek story of the Labyrinth and the Minotaur.


The sea God , Poseidon sent to King Minos of Crete, a beautiful white bull to be sacrificed in his honour. Minos however on seeing the beautiful animal decided to keep it and sacrificed another in it's place. Poseidon was so angry with Minos that he cast a spell upon Minos wife, Pasiphae which caused her to fall in love with the bull. Pasiphae unable to resist the spell mated with the bull and the offspring of their union was the Minotaur. The Minotaur grew to be so ferocious that Minos ordered a prison to be built to confine the Minotaur, and so Deadalus his servant, constructed a labyrinth which was so complex that none who went in were able to find their way back out, and the Minotaur was cast inside to remain forever.





Many years later, the Athenians who were at war with King Minos, killed one of Minos' sons. As punishment to the people of Athens, Minos called down a plague on the city. Only by agreeing to send to Crete each year seven youths and seven maidens would Minos lift the plague from the city. The youths and Maidens sent to Crete were cast by Minos into the labyrinth and there were devoured by the Minotaur.

In the third year of the tribute, the Athenian Prince Thesius, determined to end the slaughter of his people, and volunteered to go as one of the sacrificial victims where he vowed to find the Minotaur and destroy it. On arriving in Crete, Ariadne, the daughter of King Minos and Pasiphae saw Thesius and fell in love with him. She provided Thesius with a ball of string and bade him to tie one end of the string to the entrance to the labyrinth on entering, and in so doing he would be able to find his way back out again. Thesius did and within the heart of the labyrinth he found the Minotaur and killed it, fleeing Crete and taking with him the youths of Athens and Ariadne.




The tale although tragic ( I always feel sorry for the Minotaur!) is an interesting one and I rather liked the idea of it's being a part of the book.

Here's a look at one of the pages as it appears in the book.


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The pages are constructed using black velvet and a heavy matching furnishing weight fabric.





I rather like the dark look all that black added to the tale!





So that's the first part of my additions. The second section is entirely different and sets quite a different mood entirely!
More on that soon. Some things just take ages to dry properly!



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12 comments:

  1. This is very cool! Great work!!

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  2. i love the dark look, so sinister and adds an eye popping contrast and the story covered in mica as if to preserve and protect it is in keeping with the story being passed down for centuries. just stunning work! loves it! xo

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  3. I lOVE Greek mythology! Such a beautiful book!

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  4. oooh, i am SOOOO loving this! the story, the accompanying imagery, the black velvet -- i just want to touch it! i LOVE black velvet. and the mica and frames and eyelets! this is fantastic, kim! and ever so exciting! soooo can't wait to see your next additions -- i love your mind, lady!

    i'm getting started on yours today. i have two pages planned now, which i wanted to start in on yesterday but i felt a bit like chewing my leg off and had a mild fever. today i will feel great and work away. :)

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  5. Are you trained in classics and literature Kim? One of the things I absolutely love about you is your appreciation, understanding and passion about the literary past. Being trained in the latter and appreciative of the former, I think what you have done here is just outstanding! You have really added a richness and historical context to Lisa's book that so perfectly complements your artwork. I love it - everything about it is just spectacular!! Can't wait to see what surprises the flipside will hold....

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  6. This rocks!!! I love the luscious dark pages and the mythology. Yum!!!

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  7. Thanks everyone! I'm so pleased you all like the pages. The story, like most of those old Greek myths, is dark and tragic and I know that's quite a contrast to Lisa's own work in the book. The black and gold colouring, apart from providing great contrast and mood for the pages also reflects the colours that the ancient Greeks used in their own artwork of the times. Black and a golden yellow were frequently used in their pottery. The next section will be quite different. Will post soon, just waiting for pieces to dry completely before I can press on.
    Debs- No training in literature at all but just love it all so much, especially the classics! You know how it is, so many books so little time, LOL! History and literature are two of my fav topics!

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  8. Kim, This is amazing! Deb really said it best! I love the way you create the visuals to go with your stories.. and the mythology...just fabulous! You are quite the creative genius! I have to go visit your blog now!

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  9. Hi dear LISA,

    I`m once again visiting Copenhagen and my grandchildren, -this is the day here, so tomorrow being home again, I have time concentrate on looking at all the wonderfull postings from Kim .

    Love and hugs Dorthe

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  10. Sensational. I love the use of the dark colors here. Makes the piece so very strong and bold.

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  11. Wow ,what a story,
    and you so greatly showed of the myth in your way of creating in deep black against the look of altered beige tones, wonderfull.

    Dorthe

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