METAMORPHOSIS
This
sculpture had its beginnings when, while out walking with
our family dog, I came across a small but interestingly
formed fragment of Cottonwood root. The root remained in my
studio for about eighteen months as I experimented with
different ways of utilising the shapes and textures which
had first caught my eye.
Eventually I reasoned that, as I was intending to change
both the form and fabric of the root, then I should create
a piece about shape-shifting. When looking at my found root
I discerned the rudimentary shapes of a snout and a beak,
and as both birds and dogs have some significance in Celtic
mythology, I decided to base my sculpture on the dog and
crow/raven. Shape-shifting, or changing, holds an important
place in Celtic lore. It is not that the Celts worshipped
animal gods, but rather that their gods could transform
themselves at will. For example The Morrighan, a powerful
Irish triple goddess, constantly changes herself from human
hag, to young girl, to crow. Surprisingly in Celtic
tradition, the dog and the crow/raven have close links.
Both have associations with the Mother Goddess, the dog as
a symbol of healing and the crow/raven as an emblem of
death and destruction, probably due to its carrion habits.
As the crow/raven is inextricably linked with The
Morrighan, so the dog is similarly allied to Nodens, the
British god of healing. The bond is so strong that he is,
more often than not, represented in canine form. Both dog
and raven have connections to the underworld, in its role
as facilitator of rebirth, through their connections with
the Mothers.
To depict these complex ideas I have chosen to portray, a
combination of both form and symbol implying that, at any
time, one might transform into the other, from dog to
raven/crow, destroyer to healer, real to mythic. The piece
also takes the form of a janus, having two distinct facets,
the realistic and the Celtic. Transformation can also take
place between these aspects, creating a symbolic link
between times past and present. The notion that things are
not as they first appear is central to the creed of
shape-shifting. To see things in a different light, or from
a new angle alters ones understanding and makes it possible
to take the next step on the journey of spiritual
growth.