There is no dawn this morning.
Oh, Father Sun is still there — the pale light is proof of that — but sky and earth remain the same shade, merely brightening from midnight to pewter as the sun rises behind a blanket of still-falling snow.
We have not had a storm like this in years.
This is, or rather, was, normal for this time of year, of course. Our seasonal snowfall was measured in feet, a great many of them, and we could depend on three or four storms of one to three feet each over the course of a single winter punctuating more modest but regular snowfalls measuring several inches apiece.
Now, our whole small world is white, a single uniform shade that seems to have not so much swallowed as simply absorbed the light.
It’s a day to stay indoors, avoiding the bitter cold and treacherous roads, but of courses, circumstances never cooperate with such scheduling. We shall have to spend more time than we would like out in the fierce weather, armored against the elements with well-insulated coats and boots. In such conditions, we shall also need the armor of hope, of love, of a light of the spirit.
Today’s featured works embody that light of the spirit, and of a more tangible sort, too. Both are symbols of love, wrought in the native earth of this place, infused with mica that catches, holds, and refracts the local light as a part of its very being. Both are made by the same artist, and are not a matched pair, but rather, two complementary pieces wrought in the same form, of differing size and shape. The larger one, above, stands tall and graceful, the mica shimmering along its flared spouts beneath a braided handle. From its description in the Other Artists: Pottery gallery here on the site:
Water is life, and breath, and love. Olivia Martinez (Taos Pueblo) honors them all with this traditional wedding vase. Made of hand-coiled local micaceous clay, it arises out of a large round bowl nearly spherical in shape, with a gracefully angled ridge around its widest point that gives the impression of a lid. From the bowl emerge twin spouts, each flowing upward into a narrow inner lip that arcs over the top, entwined in a tall braid to represent the union of spirits in marriage. The entire vase stands 14.5″ high; it measures 9″ across the spouts at the widest point; and the bowl is 7″ across at its widest point (dimensions approximate).
Micaceous clay
$775 + shipping, handling, and insurance
Size, weight, and fragility require special handling; extra shipping charges apply
The second work is more modest in size and shape, but still infused with the light of local earth and sky. From its description in the same gallery:
Olivia Martinez (Taos Pueblo) infuses this traditional micaceous wedding vase with motifs of unity and love. The vase is made in the old way, hand-coiled, lightly polished, and fired to a subtle sheen. The bowl is slightly sculpted, a barely-definable ridge accenting its widest point; each spout emerges gracefully from the bowl, one angled upward at either side, each with a flowing outer lip and an inner lip that extends upward into a braided handle, symbolizing spirits united and intertwined. The entire vase stands 9.5″ high; it measures 7-3/8″ across the spouts at the widest point; and the bowl is 5″ across at its widest point (dimensions approximate).
Micaceous clay
$575 + shipping, handling, and insurance
Size, weight, and fragility require special handling; extra shipping charges apply
Outside the window, a cold dry snow continues to fall, and the mercury with it. By nightfall, the temperatures will be dangerously cold, and they will remain so for days now.
We are warm before the fires, but we cannot keep the world at bay indefinitely; before many more hours pass, we shall have to venture out into the elements. Then, we shall have to rely on the hope and love these works symbolize, and a light of the spirit too, to keep us safe and warm.
~ Aji
All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2018; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.
