Persephone: The Queen of the Shade
Once upon a time, when she was playing in a flowery meadow with her Nymph companions, Kore (Persephone was titled Kore (the Maiden) as the goddess of spring’s bounty) was seized by Hades and carried off to the underworld as his bride. Her mother, Demeter, despaired at her disappearance and searched for her throughout the world, accompanied by the goddess, Hecate, bearing torches. When she learned that Zeus had conspired in her daughter’s abduction, Demeter was furious, and refused to let the earth fruit until Persephone was returned. Zeus consented, but because the girl had tasted of the food of Hades — a handful of pomegranate seeds — she was forced to forever spend a part of the year with her husband in the underworld. Her annual return to the earth in Spring was marked by the flowering of the meadows and the sudden growth of the new grain. Her return to the underworld in winter, conversely, saw the dying down of plants and the halting of growth. (source)
Persephone reminds me of all the women in my life; my mothers, grandmothers, aunts... I thought about how resilient they are. I saw the women in my life go through so much, but were still able to constantly get through whatever situation life handed them. They had such a strength through the dark times, as if they knew that Spring and renewal were going to eventually come back around — I never saw them cry or be downtrodden and they always made sure there was love and laughter in the home.
I recently had been going through a rough point and often found myself trying to climb out of a darkness, up a ladder, that in reality had no end…because in reality that is what we call life, right? You go up and down this (figurative) ladder of life, but sometimes forget the ‘tools’ handed down from, in this case, the women I so looked up to. I thought about these women and their strengths and I reminded myself that it is their energy I needed to channel to stay upright on this so called “ladder.”
Socially, politically, emotionally, and really just on every level, I feel like we could all use a dose of that ‘Persephonic’ energy; a reminder that we are actually stronger than what we sometimes realize and what truly matters is making sure everyone around you is okay. Being labeled as the “Queen of the Shade” in the current world we live in, is not [always] a positive thing, but for us, that shade is what we need for protection; it is that exact shade we rely on, and supply, to embody a safe place in a troubled situation. We have learned that troubles don’t always last, and most of all that we can be happy today knowing that there will always be love and laughter around the corner because of that “sudden growth of a new grain,” mentality.
As artists, you create your own inspiration. You take your life experiences and find a way to put it in a form of communication that is artistic. You take history and repeat it, but in a ‘new’ way that is for you to interpret and for others to connect with. We invite you to experience our interpretation of who Persephone is by joining us this Saturday, from 8pm-11pm, at the Seattle Art Museum for the next installment of Legendary Children. Check out our BTS glimpse into our world of Persephone.
