Tuesday, February 28, 2012

MADONNA/ Figurative Expressionism/ CONTEMPORARY ART by Eric Whollem



MADONNA
1984
by Eric Whollem
wax emulsion on paper
Collection of the artist
6" x 9"
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

_________________

See a complete online image gallery of my ABSTRACT ART:

CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE

THE GREAT MOTHER
by Eric Whollem

BELOW IS A VIDEO
FEATURING MORE OF MY
FIGURATIVE ABSTRACTIONS


ERIC WHOLLEM                                  

Saturday, February 25, 2012

SELKIES IN CELTIC MYTHOLOGY/ Mermaid Artistamps by Eric Whollem/ FAUX POSTAGE STAMPS FROM HY BRASIL


SELKIE
Hy Brasil Seamail Post
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

SELKIES IN CELTIC MYTHOLOGY

According to the Celts the mermaids are just one form that is taken
by the Selkie. Selkies can manifest as stones, waves, fish, birds, animals,
as well as people. A 'Selkie' is a 'shifter.'

The Selkie's transformation into another being primarily transpires in the
process of metempsychosis, or reincarnation.


SELKIE
Hy Brasil Seamail Post
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

The fish tail seen in mermaid iconography symbolizes how a Selkie is both
in the physical world, but is a bridge to the next dimension. A Selkie is
a kind of angel with one foot, or should I say 'flipper,' in heaven.

The mermaid is regarded as an angel in many cultures. Often they are
depicted with wings as well as fishlike appendages. As astral beings they
take flight and swim in the astral waters.


SELKIE
Hy Brasil Seamail Post
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

Emania is said to be the Celtic Otherworld. It is the land of sun and moon.
Often it is described as under the sea. As such it well could be construed as
the proper home of the Nine Mermaids of Galway, whose cauldrons are the
womb portals of human  incarnation.

The Sciences of the Cauldrons of Gwion is the metaphysical system upon
which Celtic reincarnation theory is established. Most Celtic Goddesses, Gods,
as well as the Sidhe Folk have their own special cauldrons. Many of these
cauldrons are kept in lakes. Fresh water as well as salt water suits the purposes
of the Celtic fay.

The Sidhe Folk (pronounced Shee) are similar to the Fairyfolk of Britain and
Europe. The Bean Sidhe, or Banshee, is the designation of a Goddess. The
wail of a Bean Sidhe is not malign; it is an indication of a departed soul. and as
such represents a glorious entry into Emania, a heavenly existence where there is
no hellish punishment as is found in other metaphysical systems.


SELKIE
Hy Brasil Seamail Post
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

The apple is a symbol of immortality in Celtic belief. The Nidhogg, a type of
sea pig, is often seen in the entwined embellishments of Celtic art. The Nidhogg
is the consumer of the apple souls of men. As such this is not to be feared, as it
is a poetic metaphor for the transformations of immortal life.

The Hebrides, off the coast of Scotland, are a Celtic version of the Greek
Hesperides, the Apple Islands of archaic lore. Arthur's Avalon translates as
Apple Island as well.

The Selkies on these stamps of Hy Brasil are entwined with apple boughs,
which is suitable for beings who are so closely tied to the processes of death
and rebirth. The great Celtic sea queen Morrigan is said to have anciently
appeared on the battlefields of old to gather up those souls who have crossed
over. The mermaids are there when we shift into the world and when we shift
out, according to the Celtic traditon, (as I have interpreted it here.)

See complete set of these Hy Brasil Selkie stamps on my video below:



SELKIES IN CELTIC MYTHOLOGY
by Eric Whollem

______________________________

See my posts on CELTIC MYTH:
http://artblogericwhollem.blogspot.com/search/label/celtic%20myth

My posts on SELKIES:
http://artblogericwhollem.blogspot.com/search/label/selkies

CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE

AMONG THE STARFISH
digital art
by Eric Whollem

BELOW ARE TWO OTHER OF
MY HY BRASIL
VIDEOS

ERIC WHOLLEM                                


ERIC WHOLLEM                         

Thursday, February 23, 2012

MANANAAN McLER/ Celtic Mythology/ CINDERELLA STAMPS FROM HY BRASIL by ERIC WHOLLEM/ 'The Chariots of the Sky Sea'/ 'Emania the Land of the West'/ 'Apple Islands'/ Mythographic Artistamps



MANANAAN McLER
Hy Brasil Post Office
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

HY BRASIL POST OFFICE
2010


MANANAAN McLER
Hy Brasil Post Office
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

THE CHARIOTS OF THE SKY SEA

Mananaan McLer is the Son of the Sea King from ancient Irish
mythology. King Ler is his father; Aine was his mother, the queen of the
fairies. Mananaan was born on the Isle of Man. He had magical armor
and sword. He had power over the wind and waves; he was the patron
of sailors.

He is said to have had a magical chariot which could run across the
surface of the sea. The archetypical idea for such sea chariots may
stem from ancient Mesopotamia, the motherland of Astrology; as the
Chaldeans of old posited the night sky as a great ocean. Many of the
constellations with regular geometric form were identified as chariots
or carts. The movements of the stars across the sky sea is one of the
ancient mythological motifs of humanity.

In Welsh accounts he is called Manawyddan ap Lyr, the son of Lyr.
Bran the Raven is said to have accompanied him across the sea.
They would gather up silver apple boughs that floated on the sea;
these were symbols of immortality.


MANANAAN McLER
Hy Brasil Post Office
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

EMANIA THE LAND OF THE WEST

Emania is the name of the ancient Irish Otherworld. It is said to
be in the west. For every animal in the world there is an animal in
Emania. For every stone there is a stone in Emania. Everything has
it's counterpart in Emania. Emania is the land of the sun and moon.

The Welsh called Emania Annwyn.

In the Voyages of St. Brendan, an Irish monk of the Middle Ages,
he is said to have travelled to Emania, the land of the west. There he
discovered the land of Hy Brasil.


MANANAAN McLER
Hy Brasil Post Office
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

APPLE ISLANDS

The Hebrides off the coast of Scotland are named after the Hesperides,
which in Hellenic lore are said to be apple islands. Avalon, the famous island
of King Arthur was an apple island. Avalon, in fact, means 'apple island.'

In mythic accounts there are said to be islands that can rise and sink into the
sea. Such islands are said to be apple islands. Interestingly enough the
Hawaiians have such legendary islands in their mythology. The Hawaiians
speak of the heavenly Po of Kane; this is their Emania, their Otherworld.



MANANAAN McLER
Hy Brasil Post Office
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp sheet
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

These are faux postage stamps that I created to honor the
memory of Hy Brasil, the voyages of St. Brendan, and the
sea lore of ancient Celtic mythology.

See more of my fantasy stamp creations on the links below.
_________________________________

Readers may want to view my online image gallery of ARTISTAMPS:

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE

SISTERS OF THE SEA
artistamps from Delphys
by Eric Whollem

MOERA
an artistamp from Amphora
by Eric Whollem

BELOW IS A VIDEO
WHICH FEATURES AN ACCOUNT
OF THE
 VOYAGES OF ST. BRENDAN
AND DISCUSSES MANANAAN McLER


ERIC WHOLLEM                             

NEXT IS A VIDEO FEATURING
SELKIE STAMPS
FROM HY BRASIL     

ERIC WHOLLEM                           

THIS IS AN INTERPRETATION OF
ST. BRENDAN'S
TRAVELS

ERIC WHOLLEM                               

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

YGGDRASIL/ Scandinavian Mythology/ VISIONARY EARTH PAINTINGS by Eric Whollem/ Mythographic Art


YGGDRASIL
1975
by Eric Whollem
earth paints in polvinyl resin on panel
3' x 4'
Collection of the artist
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

THE WORLD TREE

Yggdrasil is the name of the cosmic tree from Scandinavian
mythology. The 'world tree' is an international archetype. It appears
in many cultures with many variations across the globe. It is said
that the world tree concept as it appears in Hindu art may have
originated in the same Aryan cultural mileau as the arts of Scandinavia.

In fact one might conjecture that the origins of the world tree concept
go back at least as far as the Gilgamesh Epic from Mesopotamia.
In this ancient story Gilgamesh is a hero who descends to the bottom
of the sea to procure the Gaokerena, the sacred Oxhorn Tree, said to
have magical healing powers. Gaokerena became the Haoma of
Aryan mythology, which later appeared as the Soma of the Hindus.
Soma, was said to be a red creeper, a plant that grows today in the
Himalayas. A tea from this plant is lauded in the 'Rig Veda' as the source
of God realization.

Thus my image of a version of Yggdrasil as a tree that is reminiscent to
a degree of the palm trees of Sumeria is not too far afield. Were the
red leaves in the border of my painting a precognitive association to the
leaves of Soma? I was not consciously aware of the Mesopotamian and
Aryan roots of Yggdrasil at the time that I painted this work.

Some might say that Yggdrasil is an image from the collective unconscious
of humanity; this would be the Jungian view.


THE SCANDINAVIAN ICONOGRAPHY OF THE WORLD TREE

In the painting above I have taken many visual liberties with the
Scandinavian version of the story. I have made the Midgard Serpent
into a cadeucus, or dual coiled serpent. My version of the tree is wholly
fantastical in character, not based on any image from Nordic lore.
The border design is not derivative in any way from Scandinavian
sources; it is a creation of my own artistic imagination. In the original
story three stags are associated with the tree. In my image one sees
four.

According to Norse legend the great tree is an ash tree. It is said
to have three huge roots; but the tree encompasses nine cosmic worlds.

The three Norns are seen watering the tree with their buckets.
In the branches of the tree are the animals of the world. An eagle
traditionally is seated at the top of the tree.

I have associated images of the Scandic Adam and Eve in a cameo
in the trunk of my Yggdrasil. Their names are Lif and Lifthrasir. They
are said  in Icelandic lore to have been born on a beach at the beginning
of time.

Snorre was the great  Icelandic poet who first wrote of Yggdrasil.


EARTH PAINTINGS

I have painted many paintings from earth and natural pigments gathered
in nature. The dark background color on this painting is from earth
gathered near Wagon Camp on the slopes of Mt. Shasta in northern
California. The beige pigment of the bark of the tree is volcanic pumice
from Shasta.

The blue earth is from Butte County, California. It was procured from a
huge embankment near the Enterprise Bridge. The red leaves in the border
design are iron oxide paints from Butte County. The white leaves from the
crown of Yggdrasil are made from powdered white granite, gathered in
the Feather Falls area of Butte County.

Other pigments include pulverized sandstone from Pentz, California and gray
green earth from Forbestown Road not far from Feather Falls. Violet
pumice from Mt. Shasta colors the sacred serpent image in the center of
my painting.


The links below may be helpful for those seeking more information on
Yggdrasil and on my earth painting process.

_____________________________

Readers may be interested in my posts on MYTHOLOGY:

See my articles on the COLLECTIVE UNCONSCIOUS:

See my complete online image gallery of EARTH PAINTIGS:

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE


ALAYA
by Eric Whollem

KING OF THE WOOD
by Eric Whollem


Learn more about YGGDRASIL:

THE VIDEO
BELOW SHOWS MORE OF MY
EARTH PAINTINGS


ERIC WHOLLEM                               

Monday, February 20, 2012

THE VOYAGES OF ST. BRENDAN/ Hy Brasil Cinderella Stamps/ ARTISTAMPS BY ERIC WHOLLEM/ Faux Postage Stamps from the Isle of Hy Brasil



THE EXPLORATIONS OF ST. BRENDAN
Hy Brasil Post Office
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamps
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

THE VOYAGES OF ST. BRENDAN


St. Brendan was an Irish monk who lived somewhere between 600 and
800 A.D. He was a sailor and an intrepid explorer. His 'Navigatio' describes
his travels to what may have been the Canary Islands and to the Faroes Islands
as well as to Iceland ('The Land of Forges').

He is attributed with venturing beyond Iceland to the Irish colonies in New
England. These were called 'Greater Ireland' by the Vikings, who in their old
compendium entitled, 'Landmannabok,' described the Irish as the Vestmanna,
or West Men. The Irish were used as scouts and interpreters on the first Viking
voyages to Vinland where the Irish language has known to be spoken.

Brendan's discovery, the isle of Hy Brasil, became the basis of the name of
modern Brazil.

More information about St. Brendan's travels can be found on my video notes
on my videos on Youtube.

______________________________

Readers may be interested in my posts on CELTIC MYTH:

See my online image gallery of ARTISTAMPS:

BELOW IS A VIDEO
FEATURING MY ARTISTAMPS
FROM HY BRASIL

ERIC WHOLLEM                      

THE NEXT VIDEO DISCUSSES
MORE POINTS IN THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
OF THE VOYAGES OF ST.BRENDAN    



ERIC WHOLLEM                     

                         

Sunday, February 19, 2012

CARYATID OF THE FALLS/ A figurative rendition of a Naiad by Eric Whollem/ MODERN ART/ Figurative Expressionism


CARYATID OF THE FALLS
1985
by Eric Whollem
wax emulsion on paper
6" x 9"
Collection of Cynthia Scarlett
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

________________________

See my online image archive of ABSTRACT ART:

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE

AFRICAN EVE
by Eric Whollem

BELOW IS A VIDEO
FEATURING MY FIGURATIVE
ABSTRACTIONS

ERIC WHOLLEM                                    

See my posts that deal with the topic of NAIADS of the spring:

THE OUSEL
digital art
by Eric Whollem

*

Saturday, February 18, 2012

PRAYER TO THE DAWN/ AN ALLEGORY OF ASCENSION/ United Aethernet Nations Faux Postage Stamps by Eric Whollem/ MICRONATIONAL CINDERELLA STAMPS/ Virtual Stamps for the New Age



PRAYER TO THE DAWN
United Aethernet Nations
2010
virtual stamp
by Eric Whollem
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

FAUX POSTAGE STAMPS
United Aethernet Nations


PRAYER TO THE DAWN
United Aethernet Nations
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST


CYBERSTAMPS FOR THE NEW AGE
2010


PRAYER TO THE DAWN
United Aethernet Nations
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

CINDERELLA STAMPS
BY ERIC WHOLLEM


PRAYER TO THE DAWN
United Aethernet Nations
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST


THE DAWN OF THE AQUARIAN AGE
United Aethernet Nations Postal Service


PRAYER TO THE DAWN
United Aethernet Nations
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST





PRAYER TO THE DAWN
United Aethernet Nations
2010
by Eric Whollem
virtual stamp sheet
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

This sheet of cyberstamps or virtual stamps was created in 2010.
The United Aethernet Nations is a fantasy micronational organization
created to symbolize the expansion of consicousness in the Age of
Aquarius.

________________________

See more stamps from the United Aethernet Nations on these posts:

CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE

.
THE VALE OF THE VINE
by Eric Whollem

Thursday, February 16, 2012

THE ORACLE/ A Pictographic Figurative Abstraction by Eric Whollem/ 'A Tribute to the Pythia'/ MIXED MEDIA PAINTING



THE ORACLE
1984
by Eric Whollem
mixed media on paper
Collection of the artist
9" x 6"
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

A TRIBUTE TO THE PYTHIA

The Pythia or the Pythoness is the name of the oracle of Delphi
in ancient Greece. She is usually associated with a three fold stool,
as depicted in the painting above.

She would inhale intoxicating fumes that emanated from a natural
source at Olympus where her shrine was set in the mountains of
Greece. Priests would write down her inpsired utterances which
were her reponses to inquiries from people who would arrive
from all across the ancient world.

The Pythoness was named for a great serpent that used to be kept
at Delphi. Acaean invaders who came into Greece are said to have
slain the great serpent (a symbol of the matriarchy) and established
the sun god Apollo as hierarch of the oracular center.


PICTOGRAPHIC ELEMENTS IN THIS PAINTING

As the archaic pictographs of the world are considered by some as
shamanic, or otherwise inspired writings, I took the artistic liberty of
incorporating pictographic elements into the image above.

At Mt. Sinai in Egypt, for example, there are petroglyphs that appear
to resemble in form the rock art of prehistoric California. Whether
this is diffusionism or the collective unconscious at work is too broad
a question for a concise answer here in this blog post.

However, as an artist who has taken as one of his artistic directives
the assimilation of prehistoric California pictographic arts into the
idtom of his art, I have made of the Pythia my own Californian version.
In fact the Pythia has often been treated by myself as a theme, insofar
as she has univeral appeal, as an exemplification of the ancient mysteries.

_____________________________

Read more about the PYTHIA on Wikipedia:

See more of my posts that deal with PICTOGRAPHS AND PETROGLYPHS:

THE VIDEO BELOW
ANALYZES PICTOGRAPHIC ART

ERIC WHOLLEM