"Kumulipo" ink, 3 hours. (16in x 7in)

This piece is a second piece in the "Creation" section of my concentration. It is based in the Hawaiian chant, the Kumulipo, that details their creation myth. There were a series of births, in each of which there was a new type of animal or plant. The creatures are depicted in roughly the order the appear in the chant, ending with the creation of man and woman. I used bright, tropical colors, and tribal markings to create a feeling of the native culture. I like this piece because of its complex designs and flow,, but I think that the addition of another color would have made it a little more even.

"Mother" watercolor and ink, 5 hours. (12in x 12in)

This piece is part of the "Creation" section of my concentration, and it is the goddess Coatlicue of Aztec mythology. In her legend, she was impregnated by a ball of feathers, and gave birth to the moon, sun, and stars. She is considered the Aztec "Mother Earth." She is usually depicted with clawed hands and feet, a snake skirt, full breasts, and a necklace of hands, hearts and skulls. I chose to leave out the skulls, because even though she has some morbidity about her, I felt they drew the contrast too close to something macabre. In another part of the Aztec creation myth, her head is chopped off, and two snakes sprout in its place. What I enjoy about this piece is the contrast between the often fierce and dangerous Aztec spirit, but the beauty of birth. 

"Words" watercolor and ink, approximately 6-8 hours. (approx. 16in x 20in)

This piece is part of the "Rise" section of my concentration and comes from the Norse myth regarding their language. They believed that the runes they used had divine origins. In the center of the piece is the Yggdrasil, a tree that connected all nine realms of the Norse world. Each of those 9 realms is represented by a different color, with the 1st color repeated once at the bottom to continue the idea of connections. The colors reappear in the branches and trunk of the tree, as well in its leaves. I enjoyed the piece because I was able to try several different techniques within one piece, although I would have liked the background colors (especially on the bottom) to have blended more smoothly.

"Prometheus" ink on colored paper and watercolor, 4 hours. (10in x 10in)

This piece is part of the "Rise" part of my concentration. It represents the Greek myth of Prometheus. Prometheus created man, but he also gave them fire, against the will of the gods. I tried to capture the defiant expression on the man, who is supposed to represent both Prometheus himself, and man as well. I used the minimal colors to create the effect of fire flickering on the face of thee man. The color choice is representative of the Greek pots that often told myths themselves, and is a link back to the culture from which the myth came. If I redid the piece, I would try to get a more even back. The picture also creates more harsh of a contrast than is present in the real piece, and waters down the orange.

"Sin" acrylic paint, approximately 10-12 hours. (12in x 16in)

This piece was done to practice acrylic paints, and it is also apart of my concentration. It is in the "Fall" section, and represents the infamous scene in the Garden of Eden. The snake has lighter hues, because that is a contrast to the usual idea that evil is dark and black. Although never stated in the story, I used the apple as the "forbidden fruit" because it is the traditional fruit. The background is a gradient of greens, to give off the idea that you are in the garden. however, it has a sharp dark corner that is sin creeping into the garden. I believe this piece was very successful, but the snake could use more work on its texture, because the paint is too thick in some areas.

"Icarus"colored pencil, 18 hours. (14in x 9in)

This piece is part of the "Fall" part of my mythology concentration. The story of Icarus involves a boy and his father who are trying to escape imprisonment. The father builds wings, but warns the son, Icarus, not to fly too close to the sun, or the wings will melt. Icarus does not heed the warning due to overconfidence, and falls to his death. I consider this one of my most successful pieces, and I enjoyed getting the variety of textures in the metal and the marble. I do however think the face has some uneven lines, and the neck shadows are a little harsh.