“Goddess Eyes” A Good Day At Work

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Goddess Eyes
Goddess Eyes

I did stitch the donkey head on my sewing machine.  The outline of it anyway.  I’m hand stitching the inside pieces because I like using tiny stitches space far apart that are  more visible as a texture than a stitch, because it causes the fabric to puck and pull in just the tiniest bit.

And I did so much more on Goddess Eyes today.  I was so into what I was doing,  one thing flowed to another.   I would do one thing, like add some color to the goddesses dress, then I would stop, sit on my chair half way across the room and look at the whole piece.  What I needed to do next would be revealed.  I would see it, something needed to be darker, or have more color.   In my mind, I would see a swatch of fabric that’s been sitting on my shelf and  and know it belonged on the piece somewhere.

Around 4 o’clock I was having a hard time focusing, but I didn’t want to stop working.   So I fed the animals and went to the Battenkill to swim.  There’s a swimming hole just five minutes away.   I knew it would clear my head and it did.

When I came back I added the piece of fabric with the women on it at the top and drew the interior spaces extending off of it.   Hungry and tired, I stopped around 7pm feeling like I had a really good day at work.

goddess eyes detail 1

I loved the way this 1940’s woman was pointing at the circle on the fridge ( I’m not sure what it is she’s pointing at, but I imagine it’s something special)  so I drew the goddess around it.

goddess eyes detail 2

I still have to stitch these pieces down, but I knew these wild women needed on be on this piece.  They fit perfectly and then I did the drawing to go with it.

goddess eyes detail 3

I cut the girl with the apples from a piece of fabric where she is picking apples from a tree.  I thought the apple/Eve reference appropriate.  The Goddess above her is crying the sacred fluids of life.

goddess eyes 5

This “bird” was the first thing I drew.  I saw it out of the corner of my eye when I was doing yoga and I had the blank quilt hanging on my wall.  You can see I followed the stitches which were enough to say “bird” and I improvised the rest.   The wing is from the vulture drawings in  my Goddess book.  I added the color and small drawings, which are also from the book, to it today.

12 thoughts on ““Goddess Eyes” A Good Day At Work

  1. Maria, this is so incredibly creative. You seem to have connected the present/modern with the past/spiritual by having the contemporary women and the goddesses. There is so much for the viewer to interpret here. It is a feast for an individual who takes the time to relate to this piece on a personal level. It is interesting to me because today I can connect it to Jon’s blog where he talks about what we have lost in today’s world; relating to the closing to Bridgett’s pharmacy and how the world functions today as compared to what it was like in the past. Your presentation of nature, the spiritual, the mythical and the present is fascinating. I love it. This is the gift that keeps on giving.

    1. I think it’s great Jane, that you can see the present and past in it. and to be so specific even when it comes to Bridget and the pharmacy. Thanks for your point of view.

  2. This is a beautiful piece. I am crying sacred fluids for the loss of my beloved dog Kitara who left this world on Sunday night. Her death was swift and peaceful her love and beauty still surrounds me. Looking at and hearing about this creation of yours soothes and comforts me. Thank you Maria!

  3. How do I love this piece? Let me count the ways. Actually. the others expressed their thoughts and feelings about it so well, I’m not sure what to add. I do have a particular fondness for Refrigerator Lady and Goddess.

  4. I am fascinated by this piece. The multiplicity and juxtaposition of the various symbols-at times seemingly unrelated- like finding a place for that 1950 housewife next to the earthy and primordial goddess, inviting the viewer into dialogue with the piece. I was captured by the pure visuals themselves, a development of so much of your previous work, yet a fresh expression, combination and interpretation. I loved how you worked your doorway frames as an extension of the previous fabric. I call them your doorway frames anyway, those inviting doorways in your work that open up from homey interior spaces. It always makes me feel like the doorway opens from a safe place so it is an invitation to walk through that one and the ones beyond..

    1. I always love the feeling of being able to “enter’ a picture, I’m glad to hear you find my doorways inviting Lois. I’m honestly surprised at all the positive feedback I’m getting about this piece. It does seem a natural progression for me, but I wasn’t sure others would see in it what I do. and of course you see more than I do too sometimes.

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