“…the hero returns from the night sea-journey in better shape for the tasks of life, whereas the nekyia takes the soul into a depth for its own sake so that there is no “return”.” James Hillman, The Dream and the Underworld
This folio of 18 photomontages, using found images, is from 2017.
1. Women with a Sunken Goddess
2. Woman with a Young Dionysos
3. Inundation of Aphrodite
4. Limbless Christ with Attendants
5. Christ with Vulture in a Deluge
6. Young Jesus Challenged
7. Poseidon Herding Dolphins
8. Bacchants and a Harpy
9. Cloaked & Uncloaked Storks at an Eclipse of the Sun
10. Two Men at a Rock Shelf
11. Victor and Vanquished at a Rock Shelf
12. Neptune Descending with Mask of Athena
13. Dionysus, Silenus & a Hyena Leaving a Shipwreck
14. Ecce Puer with Hyenas
15. Burghers of Calais with Fires
16. Woman with the Head of Dionysos
17. Whaler with a Dionysos Herm
18. Poverty at an Island
Photomontages are from found digital images, as follows:
No. 1 “Women with a Sunken Goddess”
Women: from Anon., “The Upper Ten of Tonga”, glass negative, 1918 – 1920. Statue: from Anon., “Limestone statue of Hera or Demeter (?)”, ca. 330 – 200 B.C. Water: from A. Foncelle, “Waves”, albumen print, 1880 – 1890. Background: from Pascal Sébah, “Medinet-Abou à Thèbes. Debris de l’interieur”, albumen print from glass negative, 1860 – 1890.
No. 2 “Woman with a Young Dionysos”
Statue: from Anon., “Marble statuette of young Dionysos”, marble, 1st–2nd century A.D. Woman: from Anon., “Two women in front of a painted landscape backdrop”, albumen print from glass negative, visiting card possibly pirated from E. Béchard’s stock (Cairo, Egypt), 1870 – 1880. Vault: from American Colony (Jerusalem) Photo Dept. photographer, “Athlit. Various including excavations. Ruins from the beach. Buttress wall close to the sea”, glass, dry plate, 1934 – 1939.
[Woman digital image courtesy of the Getty’s Open Content Program.]
No. 3 “Inundation of Aphrodite”
Aphrodite: from Caldesi & Co. Bernieri, “Sculpture of two Fates of the Parthenon”, (considered to be a sculpture of Aphrodite from the Eastern pediment), photographic paper, 1857 – 1859. Sea: from Department of Defense, American Forces Information Service, Defense Visual Information Center, “A starboard view of the stern section of the aircraft carrier USS MIDWAY (CV-41) as the ship is underway in rough seas”, 1987. Background: from William J. Stillman, “Eastern Facade of the Parthenon”, carbon print, 1870.
[Background digital image courtesy of the Getty’s Open Content Program.]
No. 4 “Limbless Christ with Attendants”
Christ: from Anon., “Crucified Christ”, ivory, French, 1260 – 1280. Attendants: from Anon., “Egyptians”, albumen silver print, ca. 1881. Background: from Fratelli Alinari (studio), “Pisa, Camposanto Interior”, albumen silver print, ca. 1850.
[Attendants and Background digital images courtesy of the Getty’s Open Content Program.]
No. 5 “Christ with Vulture in a Deluge”
Christ: from Ludovico Begarelli (attributed to), “Christ as the Man of Sorrows”, terracotta, c. 1530. Vulture: from Peeter Boel,”Gier en een arend met slang”, print, 1670 – 1674. Sea: from photograph by the artist, Bronte Beach, Sydney. Background: from Francis Frith, “Karnak”, albumen print, between 1850 and 1880.
No. 6 “Younger Jesus Challenged”
Jesus: from Anon, “Christ Child”, painted walnut, c.1510. Snake in Tree: from Caspar Luyken, “Giant Snake, coiled around a tree, attacked by a man with an axe”, etching, 1694. Background: from Thomas Moran, “The Much Resounding Sea”, oil on canvas, 1884.
No. 7 “Poseidon Herding Dolphins”
Poseidon: from Anon., “Bronze statuette of Zeus or Poseidon”, bronze, early 5th century B.C. Dolphins: from Anon, “Rock Crystal Statuette of a Dolphin”, Roman or Byzantine, 3rd–5th century. Sea: from photograph by the artist, Bronte Beach, Sydney, 2017.
No. 8 “Bacchants and a Harpy”
Sculptural group: from Anon., “View of Unidentified Sculpture Group (Drunken Dionysos & Satyrs?)”, glass negative, between 1898 and 1946. Copper bird: from Anon., “Bird”, copper alloy, South Netherlandish, 15th century. Harpy: from Pietro da Cortona, “Part of the vaulted decoration in the Palazzo Barberini’s salon with Hercules ravaging the Harpies, so Justice and Abundance can help the poor”, engraving, 1692 – 1762. Background: from Amanda Gruhn, “Sunset at McKell Park, 21 April 2017”, digital photograph, Sydney Harbour.
No. 9 “Cloaked & Uncloaked Storks at an Eclipse of the Sun”
Storks: from Frederick Bloemaert (printmaker), after Abraham Bloemaert, “Four storks stand at the edge of their nest”, engraving / etching, after 1635 – 1670. Cloak: from Anon., “Cape with small dots and rosettes”, silk, velvet (fabric weave), satin sash, ostrich feathers, c. 1900. Eclipse: from S.W. Burnham, Lick Observatory, “Total eclipse of the sun (frontispiece)”, photograph, c. 1873 – before 1893. Background: from Louis de Clercq, “Jérusalem. (Environs) St Jean du Désert”, Albumen silver print from paper negative, 1860 or later.
No. 10 “Two Men at a Rock Shelf”
Younger Man: from Hiram Powers, “Fisher Boy”, marble, 1857. Older man: from Anon., “Bronze statuette of an artisan with silver eyes”, bronze, silver, ca. mid-1st century B.C. Dolphin: from Gaston Lachaise, “Maquette for Dolphin Fountain”, wood, painted, gilt, ca. 1924. Seascape: from photograph by the artist, Bronte Beach, Sydney, 2017.
No. 11 “Victor & Vanquished on a Rock Shelf”
Armour: from Anon, “Field Armour of King Henry VIII of England” (reigned 1509–47), steel, blackened, etched, and gilt; textile and leather Italian (Milan or Brescia), ca. 1544. Vanquished Figure: from Anon., “Statuette of a Dead Youth”, bronze with inlaid copper, Greece, 480 – 460 B.C. Bird: from Reinier Vinkeles (printmaker), “Flying bird of prey”, etching / engraving, 1751 – 1816. Sea: from photograph by the artist, Bondi Beach, Sydney, 2017.
No. 12 “Neptune Descending with Mask of Athena”
Neptune: from Adam Lenckhart, “Neptune”, ivory, mid-17th century. Neptune’s Pulley: from Anon., “Model of a Jeer”, wood, brass and rope, 1820. Athena: from Anon, “Head of an image of Athena”, photographic paper, c. 1895 – 1915. Athena’s ropes: from Anon., “Reef Band with a Toggle”, rope and wood, 1860 – 1895. Background: from Félix Teynard, “Abo-Sembil, Grand Spéos, Statues Colossales vues de Face (Parte Inférieure)”, salted paper print from paper negative, 1851–52. Sea: from photograph by the artist, Bondi Beach, Sydney, 2017.
No. 13 “Dionysus, Silenus & a Hyena Leaving a Shipwreck”
Dionysus: from Anon., “Dancing Dwarf”, marble, Egypt, 332–150 B.C. Silenus: from “The Crouching Silenus, Stage of Theatre of Dionysus, Athens, Greece”, photographic print on stereo card, H.C. White Co., publishers, c1901. Hyena: from Anon., “A Hyena Standing in a Rocky Landscape”, etching, publisher and date unknown. Ship: from Anon., “Damaged Whaling Ship”, albumen silver print, American, c1870.
No. 14 “Ecce Puer with Hyenas”
Boy in Pool: from Medardo Rosso, “Ecce Puer”, bronze, Italy, 1906. Hyena (left side): from John Le Keux, “A Striped Hyena”, London publisher unknown, 1800-1846. Hyena (right side): from Anon., “A Hyena Standing in a Rocky Landscape”, etching, publisher and date unknown. Background: from George Barker, “Live Oaks and Palmetto, Everglades, Florida”, albumen silver print, Florida, United States, 1886.
[Background digital image courtesy of the Getty’s Open Content Program.]
No. 15 “Burghers of Calais with Fires”
Figures: from Auguste Rodin, “The Burghers of Calais”, bronze, modelled 1884–95, cast 1985 (Coubertin Foundry). Fires: from H. Goltzius, “The vexatious litigant dies: the monster Litigation receives his soul, while Evil Conscience and Poverty dig his grave from which hellfire billows”, engraving, 1590-1599?. Background: from Félix Bonfils, “Thèbes. Vallée des tombeaux. Bab-el-Molok (Égypte)”, albumen silver print, 1870s.
[Background digital image courtesy of the Getty’s Open Content Program.]
No. 16 “Woman with the Head of Dionysos”
Woman: “Evil Conscience” from H. Goltzius, “The vexatious litigant dies: the monster Litigation receives his soul, while Evil Conscience and Poverty dig his grave from which hellfire billows”, engraving, 1590-1599?. Dionysos: from Anon., “Head of the Young Bacchus”, bronze with silver, Roman Empire, first half of 1st century. Dionysos’ Pole: from Anon., “Lance from a coat of arms”, wood and steel, 1833 – 1835. Volcano: from Anon., “An eruption of Vesuvius at night, 1829, showing the inside of the crater with smoke, fire and lava, and spectators looking on”, coloured aquatint with gouache, date & publisher unknown. Background: from Félix Teynard, “Dakkeh, Village et Rives du Nil”, salted paper print from paper negative, 1851–52.
[Dionysos head image courtesy of the Getty’s Open Content Program.]
No. 17 “Whaler with a Dionysos Herm”
Heads: from Anon., “Portrait Head of a Man”, marble, mid-3rd century. Lying figure: from Auguste Rodin, “The Martyr”, bronze, modelled 1885, originally a standing figure on the lintel of The Gates of Hell. Dionysos: from Anon.,”Small Marble Support in the Form of Dionysos Herm (part of a piece of furniture)”, marble, 1st century. Ship: from Anon., “Whale ship hove down for repairs, New Bedford, Mass.”, part of a Stereograph photograph, date unknown (late 19c).
[Ship photograph courtesy of The New York Public Library; Dionysos photograph courtesy of the Getty’s Open Content Program.]
No. 18 “Poverty at an Island”
Woman: “Poverty” from H. Goltzius, “The vexatious litigant dies: the monster Litigation receives his soul, while Evil Conscience and Poverty dig his grave from which hellfire billows”, engraving, 1590-1599?. Torso: from Anon., “Marble torso of a boy”, marble, Roman, 1st-2nd century A.D., copy of a Greek bronze statue of the late 5th century B.C., possibly of Narcissus or Hyacinthus. Island: from Carleton E. Watkins, “Sugar Loaf Islands, Farallons”, albumen silver print from glass negative, 1868–69. Sea: from photograph by the artist, Bronte Beach, Sydney, 2017. Background: from 2 images, both Anon., “An eruption of Vesuvius at night, 1829, showing the inside of the crater with smoke, fire and lava, and spectators looking on”, coloured aquatint with gouache, date unknown; and “Mount Vesuvius in eruption at night, with smoke, fire, and lava, over the Bay of Naples”, gouache, 1794.