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.
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She was a strong and vibrant soul, and lucky to have you so solidly in her corner for the final years of her life. You gave her all you could, and she knew that, all the way to the end.
ReplyDeletesuch a powerful piece. she is in the air and the water, the sunshine and the starlight
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