Tuesday, December 20, 2011

More Shinto goddesses

I finally got around to finishing the triptych I decided to undertake when I finished Benzaiten. I'm not sure that I am entirely done with the whole ukiyo-e inspired style yet. I really enjoy the ethereal look, with the figures seemingly suspended in time and gently considering their surroundings. But for now, these are the deities I thought would complement each other nicely.

So there's Benzaiten/Benten, as previously introduced...



Then it's O-Ryu the willow goddess with Konohanasakuya-hime the cherry blossom goddess. I liked the contrast between the two trees/goddesses: An sturdy, tall green tree beside a dainty flowering tree...



Lastly, there is Amaterasu, the Sun goddess. I wanted her to look colossal, as the Sun shines on the entire world, but I wanted her to still look nurturing and poised...



Even though I didn't carefully plan how each picture would look when finished, I quite like the effect when putting them all together. There is a nice spectrum of elements going on with the goddesses and the colour schemes, Benzen being water, O-Ryu and Konohanasakuya earth and Amaterasu fire...



3 comments:

  1. Dear Celeste,

    Those paintings are very beautiful -- they are watercolor, no? Would you ever consider making some of the male figures? Some that I found quickly are Fūjin (wind), Raijin (thunder/lightening), Ryūjin (sea), Suijin (water), Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto (moon). Also, Idaten -- quickness.

    Either way, thank you so much for making beautiful paintings :)

    Peace,
    Steven

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  2. Good afternoon, my name is Bruno. I am an image researcher for textbooks at FTD in Brazil. We are interested in acquiring an art of yours to reproduce in one of our books. I would like your contact (email) so we can buy it.
    Thank you.

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