Mums, Donuts and Fish

I love all things Octo, which I got connected to from my son, who recently reminded me that Cuttlefish are pretty cool too.  

 

Octomum collage

 

My friend Jess, lovely muse, inspires me once again.  I told her I think she has great angles and her selfies really capture them in an 'artsy' way.  She wasn't sure about all that, but is happy to inspire me.

 

Donuts and Bulldog With Jess

Jess has just opened a new venture to inspire creativity in others too.  Check out her new studio/shop Paint It Orange [orangepaints.com]  in, you got it, Orange, Virginia. 

I came across a cache of vintage tattooed ladies. And quite tattooed they are. A world of their own.  All the images were in black and white but a bit of colorizing, amplifying and they are aglow in their true colors. 

Tattooed Ladies Among Fish

The large fish background is actually a photo of a feature wall in a restaurant.  The happy goldfish joined the crowd and they are the final images i got from my friends at Mischief Circus.

Bastet - Jacqui Rose

For decades, my sister, Jacqui Rose, felt deeply aligned to the ancient Egyptian goddess, Bastet. The essence of Bastet was symbolic in Jacqui's spiritual practices.

Bastet, also called Bast, is the Egyptian goddess of the home, domesticity, women's secrets, cats, fertility, and childbirth. She was the daughter of the sun god Ra and is associated with the concept of the Eye of Ra (the all-seeing eye) and the Distant Goddess (a female deity who leaves Ra and returns to bring transformation).  Bastet's cult was carried to Italy by the Romans, and traces have been found in Rome, Ostia, Nemi, and Pompeii.  Our own family has Italian heritage.

I began this collage about a month after Jacqui's passing. I wanted to capture Jacqui in her strength and power; her fullness.  The orange tabby alludes to her own cat, Keppie, and I was pleased to find an orange tabby goddess figure. The gray cat alludes to a cat I once had. I think of them as sisters' cats. 

And once again, she is in the stars.

I submitted her in the upcoming 'Artist's Choice' exhibit at SVAC, Shenandoah Valley Art Center.