Royal Motherhood, Ink on paper, 100 cm x 110 cm, $6000
I created this work to celebrate womanhood. Eve, from the story found in the Bible, was the inspiration for this piece. As I reflected on this particular woman, I began to think about how difficult her life must have been and how brave she was considering the circumstances described in the holy text. She was to become the mother of all! I then turned my thoughts to some women good, brave, accomplished women I know in my life. I wanted to create a piece that would celebrate them.
There are three subjects that I wanted to include in the work. The first is the image of a queen bee. This bee symbolizes the power and authority of women. The queen bee directs the entire colony and protects her own. The second symbol I wanted to portray was a pomegranate. Some have speculated the forbidden fruit that Eve partook of in the garden of Eden was a pomegranate. It is the symbol of motherhood because of the large number of seeds that this fruit bares. I choose to include this fruit because I wanted to celebrate the divinity of motherhood and on the miracle of pregnancy, birth, and breastfeeding. The last symbol I wanted to include in the work was a crown. I believe that if women live up to their full potential as strong, good, powerful people and partake, if you will, of the blessings and struggles that accompany motherhood, women become queens worthy of crowns of glory.