This piece i’m working on -part of a triptych- I’m hesitantly referring to as ‘lament of the Lamia’. It’s a reference to the Greek myth of the Lamia. According to the myth, a Libyan queen was ‘with’ Zeus’ (I think it’s always questionable as to consent, Classical Greek society was tough on women). She had children who were murdered by Hera out of jealousy, and became a half woman half snake monster who hunted children. It’s a tragic story, often I find these ‘monsters’ of mythology seem to me to warrant more sympathy than the demonic status they are given. I’m also interested in the snake/woman connection-a long story (I wrote about it in my thesis). I always loved serpents as a child, had my own for 15 years. Beautiful creatures, also revered and demonized in throughout the world. I keep thinking about the power of mother nature, how for so long we thought ‘man’ was in control but somehow, these days, it would appear we were wrong. Maybe our demonization and need to control nature has resulted in our own destruction. Like the Lamia, she was a victim who suffered too much from the death of her children. We are the creation of our own monsters. Like Frankenstein. Maybe we should look at her more through the lens of the martyrs we revere rather than demons we condemn. Just a thought.
