"Generations (Mother, Maiden, Crone), 12 x 12" mixed media on wood by Lea K. Tawd
We hear stories of artists, especially sculptors, looking into their raw material and seeing what it wants to become. My painting process is also very intuitive. My first step is always painting the wood grain so that it will stand out. This is a meditative time for me, during which I begin to feel out the image that wants to exist on the wood. After the wood grain is prepared, I often add collage elements, and then draw out the picture. After drawing, I add more collage, paint, ink, stamping, and whatever else the piece calls for.
This painting, however, was calling to me before I even touched it. The wood grain was shaped in such a way that I could already see these women standing before each other. Each of their bodies is actually a shape in the grain, just the way it was before I added the smallest drop of paint. These are generations of women standing before each other in Time. Grandmother, mother, daughter; daughters all. They are also the archetypal Women, the Mother, Maiden, and Crone, standing in their feminine power and wisdom before the crescent moon, with a starry compass to guide them.
If this piece is calling to you as loudly as it called to me, you can take a closer look and purchase it HERE.