Unfortunately, with Nerthus, I had little to work with. I have to admit that my artwork is best when it comes from structure - in the case of Gods and Goddesses, this structure is the myths that surround them. I wrote a bit about Nerthus in my Charming of the Plow packet (which, in the excitement of the whole experience, forgot to give to Troy…oops, my bad). So, since it is easily looked up on Wikipedia and the like, I will not delve deep into the history of Nerthus, just my UPG (Unsubstantiated Personal Gnosis). AGAIN - this is my own PERSONAL feelings of Nerthus.
Nerthus is a goddess of fresh, standing water - that of ponds and lakes. This is why I depicted her dipping her feet into a pond. She is a goddess of preparation - preparing the earth for the new season. I put flowers in her hair - a sign of the coming spring. Continuing in that vein, she is an earth goddess - our careful preparation of the soil leads to fruitful results. Her dark hair, the color of moist, nutrient-rich earth was not an accident. It may also be obvious to you all that she is a big girl - as many earth goddesses were depicted. Being shown in this way is a very primal statement - it means that the fruitfulness of the earth will lead to prosperity -which equals more food to eat.
All in all, I think it came out well. I particularly like the expression on her face, and was told by others that they liked it too. I must be doing something right!
HAIL NERTHUS!
Hi there,
ReplyDeleteHenry Lauer here, a net-wandering heathen who really digs your artwork!
I write for Hex Magazine and also keep an eye out for folk who are doing good stuff and who might be interested in contributing to Hex... and your work is fantastic! check out Hex at www.hexmagazine.com or you can email me at henry@ironwoodsound.com.au
Thanks
Henry
Wow! Thanks! I'm working on a Baldur/Hodr painting, a Falcon Freya painting, and a Mani painting at the moment. I'll give you a shout when I finish another Asatru-themed piece.
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