about "The Waterman"

(funny to have finished my depiction of Jesus Christ so close to Easter. I swear it was not on purpose. but the muses sometimes like coincidences. or, if you prefer, synchronicities.)

well, it's finally done, the first part of my most ambitious project so far. it's the middle panel of The Waterman triptych, called Unio Mystica. it is a work full of symbolism and it's impossible to unfold each one of them here, since each symbol leads to a myriad of things, either Bible passages or occult teachings. (anyway, long time ago a person I met told me that the Bible is the greatest occult book in the world. as the years passed and as I advanced in my studies on astrology, tarot and symbols, I was forced to recognize he was totally correct. and my amazement about how all the things are so creatively and intelligently intertwined in this world just grows. with all my respect for the non-believers, with all this harmony I see and perceive I just can't believe there is no Creator!)

The Waterman is about the Age of Aquarius and how the words of the Christ will reveal themselves in all their purity and brightness. the main piece (Unio Mystica) is the macrocosm, in the figure of the Christ, while the surrounding ones are the microcosm, in the form of the Four Elements. when I was brainstorming this piece, I was lead in my research to this page and got in awe to see a picture of a waterman along with symbols of spirituality and transformation. both the picture and the page were what I call a gift from the Universe and provided me with the directions my work should take. all fit perfectly to my concept and initial ideas.

the central figure of the panel/triptych is a naked man carrying a vase of water. he exudes freedom and strength. on his body we see the main chakras lightened and tied, since the base of the spine to the the crown of the head, where it shows like a big multicolored flower. this is the perfect man, the man that was able to rise his kundalini and work his creative/divine potential to its fullest and becoming God. this man is the Christ, the highest model humankind can aspire. the enlightened spirit that incarnated in a dense, material body just like ours to make us learn that we are gods and that all those things he'd done, we could also do. in his hand he brings a rose instead of blood and wounds, to remind us that it's our existence in the flesh, with all its pains and struggles, that make us bloom as spirits.

he pours water over two figures at the bottom, that bathe in it in attitude of deliverance and communion. The water is an universal symbol of spirituality and rebirth. "In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. " (Acts 2:17) That is the big spiritual quest humankind will confront when all the dogmatic forms of beliefs start being crumbed by progressive philosophies and scientific discoveries. then the words of Jesus will come through with new strength and understood "without the veil of the letter."

two details were painted without I being consciously aware of. one were the flames that appear on the figures foreheads, that remind the "tongues of fire" that came upon the apostles in the day of Pentecost. another detail is a little more "visionary": the "ribbons" that come down from the rose in a spiral that is very similar to the model of a human DNA. a fresh insight I just had is that, since our incarnations mold our DNA, who knows this will be one the huge scientific discoveries for the next decades that will lead us to the understanding of the immortality of the soul... and that the Master was right when he said "No one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again" (John 3:3)

about "The Scream"

i explained in this post a little of what lead me to make The Scream. it's basically a piece about violence against women, a subject that really sensitizes me not only for being a woman, but also for being human and for dreaming and working for a better world based on respect and equality.

my first certainty about this work, in my brainstorm, was that I didn't want a piece that was oppressing or showed only the pain of the violence or abuse. I wanted something that could have a "voice", that could help people to reflect about how to change things.

I first envisioned a monochromatic piece, in brown tones, with some hints of red. but once more I couldn't help myself and distributed warm colors all over. they ended up contributing for the dynamism and strength of the piece.

the symbolism of the piece is quite simple and direct. there's a dual figure in the center. it might be the same woman in two different attitudes, if you like. the red-haired one is scared and in pain. she holds her bleeding heart and wears a mask to keep herself hidden from judgment or other losses. she might be the one who was raped in a party after drinking too much, the one who was abused for a family member but preferred to hide in order to do not cause disturbances in the family, the one who was beaten for her husband but kept silent for fear of losing her children. she might be one of the Congo women. she might be me, or you.

the black-haired woman doesn't wear a mask. she is screaming - although sometimes I think that she is in fact singing. what she releases from within herself is a bird, red as life. is the desire for freedom from a world conquered by force, not love. she screams her right to be treated as a human being instead of a second-class citizen, as a partner instead of a subordinate. her right to express her own ideas and have their own attitudes without being demonized for them.

there are also masks at the bottom, a pile of masks without faces behind them. they once belonged to women who decided to scream instead of keep silent and anonymous. that decided to stop pretending that that's how the world is and there's nothing that can be done to change it. but there's so much one can do just by having a voice... to demand political and social responsibilities. to educate the new generations toward respect and non-perpetuation of old habits that put men in a privileged position. in other words, to demand respect for being human.