SELENE (ENCHANTRESS OF THE NIGHT) - Framed

Original Gold Cyanotype. Cyanotype, handmade paper, 24-carat gold leaf.

Handmade recycled cotton rag paper:
320gsm / 100% Cotton Rag / Recycled / Acid Free / Medium Rough

Inspiration
This artwork is inspired by Selene, the Titan goddess of the moon. She is said to drive her glowing chariot powered by beautiful white horses across the sky each night, a symbol of the glorious night as the proverbial light in the darkness. As the patron of femininity, she was known to have the power to ease childbirth, to inspire love, to mask reality, and to pierce illusion. Mythology also states that she has powers surrounding dreams and intuition, harnessing the ability to awaken intuition and to catalyse psychic visions. Waxing and waning and reborn with each new month, the Moon has always been the supreme symbol of cyclical change in the western world. Selene represents constant change, she personified life's constant changes. She is honored at the Full Moon and the days of the full and new moon were set aside for her worship. At that time she is at the height of her reproductive potential and can bring forth new life. She was perceived as being a goddess of mothers and women, who were eager to conceive, invoked her for fertility, intuition and inspiration.

Symbolism of the three female figures intertwined with the main portrait.

Selene is a goddess whose presence is felt when the moon is full. In the triple phase of womanhood, Selene is the fruitful mother at the Full Moon who stands proudly between the maiden Artemis at the Waxing Moon and the crone Hecate at the Waning Moon. Selene is usually depicted with a pale face and a crescent-shaped crown on her head. She wears a long cloak while raising a torch to light the night sky filling the heavenly realms with her power. Often identified with Artemis, (the Greek goddess of the hunt, wild animals wilderness, the moon and childbirth/ midwifery). Selene and Artemis (were also associated with Hecate, (Hecate was generally represented as three-formed or triple-bodied associated with crossroads, night, light, magic, witchcraft and the moon) and all three were regarded as prominent moon and lunar goddesses but only Selene was regarded as the personification of of the Moon itself.

Technique
Selene (Enchantress Of The Night) was created by constructing a hand-cut collage using female photographic portraiture, photographs and glass plate negatives of the moon and clouds and illustrations of elements of flowing water and wind. After coating the handmade paper with light-sensitive chemistry, it is left to dry in a dark room. The large scale negative is then printed onto the paper by exposure to daylight (UV rays). The print is then processed by thoroughly washing in water to remove any unexposed solution. It can then be hung to dry, developing to full density Prussian blue after 24 hours before hand finishing with 24-carat gold leaf.

Signed by the Artist.

'Own Art' Option Available - Contact the gallery for further information.