Persephone through Hades
This series is an abstract exploration of the feminine journey into the depths of herself, the decomposition of the former self, the seductive snares of remaining underground, and the triumphant ascension of the predestined queen.
Hades, a conduit of transformation, is represented in the snarled and chaotic roots. Persephone is represented in the flower — once small and contained but ultimately reborn into her complex and wild glory. The queen made possible through her duality and intimate knowledge of things unseen.
Photos by Daniel Tirado
maidenhood
The maiden Persephone was picking flowers in a soft meadow. She reached out with both hands to take hold of the narcissus bloom.
5.5” x 5.5” x 7”
abduction
The earth opened beneath her and Hades seized her on his golden chariot and drove her down to the underworld as she wept.
7” x 7” x 5”
dissolution
Her mother Demeter, goddess of the harvest, searched endlessly for her daughter and made the earth barren in her grief.
6” x 6” x 6”
emergence
When the order came to return Persephone, Hades agreed but stealthily gave Persephone pomegranate seeds to eat. Because she ate the fruit of the underworld, Persephone was forever tied to both worlds, unable to divorce herself from the journey through death to rebirth.
6.5” x 6.5” x 7”
queendom
Persephone returns every year to rule as queen of the underworld. And when she is reunited with her mother, the earth erupts in the blooms and abundance of spring.
13” x 13” x 7”
