Art Challenge Number 4

You may see an acorn seedling...... This is my story:
He was the gatherer of the clouds and guardian of human kind. He was a god and there was no way to escape his will. He captured the countless plagues and misery that wandered amongst mortals. He imprisoned us in a clay pithus for all eternity.

Then he gave the pithus to the woman and told her to never open it. He warned her that within lay all the great evils of man. I was among that number and by name the most evil of all.

But this woman was filled with curiosity and opened the lid. Wickedness, diseases, misery and burdensome labor were released upon the world! When she saw what she had done, she quickly pushed me back, locking only me inside. She said, “You are the ruin of mortals. You destroy the wounded and take the hearts and souls of man. You are the tears of every mother and the destruction of their sons. You will never leave or know freedom.”

I pounded! I screamed! I begged for her mercy: “You may see an acorn seedling, but I see a mighty oak. You may see the tundra, but I see a great city. You may see a man, but I see a king. I am their reason for living. If not for me- there would be no rainbows on the horizon. There would be no faith, tears or laughter. There would be no mothers or sons. Their would be no reason to strive, believe or even salvation for their mortal souls."

"I am 'HOPE' Pandora. Set me free!”

And as the story goes, Pandora decided to let 'HOPE' out and ever since, we've all been in a heap of trouble.

You got it! The theme is 'HOPE”. This is Art Challenge #4 for Michael Edens, Martha Marshal and myself. It was Martha's pick this time. Approaching the New Year and a new administration, Martha's choice was most appropriately- 'HOPE'.

After doing dozens of drawings and tossing many ideas in the air, I finally decided a little seedling hoping to become a mighty oak was exactly what I was searching for to define our subject.
My story is based on Greek Mythology's Zeus and Pandora's Box . Although, as I learned from my research, it was actually Pandora's pithos: translation=clay jar (Apparently 'Pandora's box' is a term from contemporary literature.)

Both Michael and Martha have their own unique interpretation of HOPE:
To see Michael Edens 'HOPE' please go here- MDE Art
To see Martha Marshall's.- An Artist Journal2

These Art Challenges were created by Michael and I this past spring by a simple dare. We were delighted that Martha joined in the process with Challenge3. For us as artist, the challenges are an extraordinary exercise in illustrating a subject in our own varied styles which go from abstract to traditional. The challenges demand research, interpretive thought and are always great fun. If you would like to be part of the next challenge, please contact Michael or Vikki. All mediums or crafts are welcome. To read the background and see our past challenge art : Challenge #1, Challenge #2, and Challenge #3

The power of hope is indisputable and always controversial. Many sayings, from 'Hope springs eternal' to 'Abandon all hope, ye who enter here', have glossed the pages of great literature and history. How does 'hope' resonate in your life?
Vikki

The little painting is called (what else?) 'Hope'. It's 9”x12” acrylic on un-stretched canvas panel. For Christmas, I will be pricing it at only $45 plus shipping and handling Please visit The Red Chair Gallery website. 10% discount on all original paintings (not including prints) until Dec.1, 2008.