"She emanates a soft glow with the grace of a Goddess and oozes the fervour of a woman. She is fearless, assured and mesmerising. While she whispers sweet nothings, she will quietly lead you into temptation." - Lorelei by artist Tanya Marie Reeves
Name
The name Lorelei is a female name of German origin meaning alluring, temptress. In old German legend, Lorelei was the name of the beautiful Rhine River seductress, or siren.
Symbols and Totems
A garden is also a symbol of life, death, decay, rebirth and renewal, ground in the feminine for it's cyclic nature, fertility beauty, nurture and transformation.
In history, both in art and literature, the garden is portrayed as dimension that is separate from our everyday life, most often represented as a luxuriant place, sometimes surrounded by walls, filled with fountains, fruit trees or domesticated animals, the garden is depicted as a place of peace and spiritual refreshment. A borderland between two worlds. Almost Heaven.
Inspiration
My inspiration for both Maeve and Lorelei were the silhouettes themselves; Outlines I had drawn up many moons ago, absolutely loved, and had decided I wanted to make magic of, in unison with each other. Both of these ladies were created simultaneously.
I wanted to keep these two divine beauties simplistic, making a statement of (although not limited to) my elaborate distressing of the beautiful fabrics of their foundations.
Although their simplicity did not make for easy going along the way! There were many colour changes, some heartache and risk in removal of one particular flower and then carefully re-stressing the clean area so as for it not to look out of place. Mission accomplished.
In the end I am thrilled for the way both of my ladies have evolved. While all of my personal stylistic traits are obvious, they are still quite unlike anything else I have created.
Details
24 April 2023
H121xW101cm – 48x40”
Acrylic on fabric on stretched canvas
Fabric: Bethan Janine for Dashwood Studio - Good Vibes Floral Bird