Marjatta

Marjatta — the figure of the final story of the Finnish epic myth The Kalevala as well as the object of the composer Sibelius' three-part oratorio of the same name — marks the ends of Finnish paganism. She belongs both to the pre-christian tradition and she is the virgin mary, she is a threshold figure marking the death of one era and the birth of another through the literal birth of Kiesus (Jesus). Depicted here, Marjatta is barren. The male stag standing behind her cannot be the baby Jesus. Both Marjatta and the stag remain in the pre-christian world of fantasy, indicated by Marjatta's yellow embroidered tunic and the dark patchy trees behind them.  As they both make eye contact with us, and we turn to face them, we realize we are christianizers. Yet, Marjatta has already accepted her fate (the demise of the hermeneutic pagan world) and so she holds her legs slightly ajar to make way for God. The stag behind her acts as a temporary protector, yet knows it cannot stand against the coming force of the abrahamic divinity. This painting, in other words, is the moment before the storm, Mary before conception, pagan Europe before christian Europe. I painted this piece from a series of photographs I took of a mormon woman named Remi, alongside additional photographs I took of deer I encountered while hiking. It is a mixture of glazing layers and direct application.