It's a big, beautiful machine, weighing in at probably 30 pounds! I recently took a new creative direction by making artist books, where I utilize collage materials and text. Rather than merely depicting typewriters, I wanted to actually TYPE stuff and integrate it into my books. So, I wrestled my Woodstock back into my car and had it repaired at Type Space, Portland’s Vintage Typewriter Shop!
Below is a video of me tussling with my new contraption. In the video, I am writing a piece about having ADHD, which I will use in my new artist book, Analyze. Curiously, the act of typing echoed what it can be like to have ADHD. The process was long and laborious, and the result is a bit messy and garbled, yet totally unique and beautiful in its own way. Typing also made me reflect on this unique moment in our history. Now our keyboards require a light touch, and with tools like spell check and AI, we can rattle off whatever pops into our head, unthinkingly. Combined with the web and social media, this can lead to oversharing, thoughtlessness, and even trolling. It made me imagine a world past when we had to be so deliberate with our communication-where everyone had to take a breath and consider each word before committing it to the page.
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In 2007, I launched upon a project.
I wanted to make something of myself. I worked hard to create a cohesive body of work in a style I felt viewers would enjoy and want to own. I built a website and learned the basics of self-marketing. I answered calls to exhibit. Eventually, I got gallery representation. My career was on an upward trajectory—better galleries, better shows, more sales, and higher prices for my work. Until…
The upshot is that the first eight years of my career was ascendant, and the second eight years have been a retraction, to the extent that, for the large part, I’m back pretty much to where I started- or at least where I was in about 2011. Maybe if I had worked harder, things it would have gone differently. Perhaps if I had made better choices here and there, I would have had a different outcome. But truthfully, probably not- at least not substantially. The Bigger Picture I knew that being an artist was hard. I just didn’t know how hard. Perhaps I was naïve.
And I have changed. I was approaching my 40th birthday when I started- now I’m 56! The man who was then simply my boyfriend is now my devoted husband. I’ve lost both of my parents. And I’ve gone through that infamous hormonal transformation that compels every woman to experience a fundamental shift in perspective. I’m unbelievably fortunate. I have love, support, fun activities, and close relationships with family and friends. In truth, I have an absolutely wonderful life- the question is: how do I want to spend it? I do know one thing: I want to keep creating. My work has gotten more personal as the years have gone by. More personal, and frankly, better. My direction may not be to everyone’s taste, but its complexity and depth has grown with experience. I am a better artist now than I was 16 years ago, and I intend to get better.
In the meantime, I’m deeply exploring what drives me to create—the "prime mover" behind my art. My hope is to eventually be fully aligned with that force. This dreamy nocturne depicts an ancient Phoenician temple complex on the tiny island of Motya, off the coast of Sicily. Active from about 800 BCE to 400 BCE, the complex consists of several buildings and altars, surrounded by a graceful, circular boundary wall called a tememos. They are all centered around a 170 by 120-foot reflecting pool fed by underground springs, the only source of fresh water on the island. The Phoenicians The Phoenicians were a highly mobile, advanced and influential culture, which originated as a conglomeration of city states in what is now mostly Lebanon. They were the ones who invented the alphabet! With that pedigree, you'd think we'd know more about them. (To read more about the alphabet, and what makes it so special, read my blog entry about The Cup of Nestor.)
The Temple Complex The Temple of Ba’al is oriented towards the constellation of Orion, which the Phoenicians regarded as the celestial representation of Ba’al. Adjacent to Orion is Sirius, another star important for maritime navigation.
An Odd Archeological Mistake The colony at Motya was destroyed by the Greeks in 396 BCE, and the temples fell into ruin. Fast forward to the early 1900's, and Joseph Whitaker excavated the site for the first time. Sometime over the centuries, a channel had been dug, connecting the formally sacred pool to the sea, filling it with briny water. It had been used as a dry dock and as a salt pan. Whitaker assumed the pool had always been connected to the sea, and called it a "cothon." In 2010, Professor Lorenzo Nigro of La Sapienza Unversity of Rome started a new excavation. But what they found didn't match up with the harbor buildings they were expecting. Then things got even weirder.
Repeating Themes Many of the pieces I have been doing for my series on Archeology Art have involved star constellations- in fact, the SAME constellations. Gemini, Pleiades, Taurus, Orion, Ares. There have been many repeating themes in this series. Stars, circles, centered and symmetrical compositions, boats, the sea, plans of ruins. But what really amazed me was when I realized this piece looks so similar to a piece I did about 25 years ago. I believe it was called City in the Belly, though it is long gone and I cannot be sure.
My inner visual impulses seem to ring true through the years. I suppose this means I'm on the right path. "Seahenge" is a misnomer. But, when it was excavated in 1998, a clever journalist called it "The Stonehenge of the Sea," and the name stuck.
Seahenge, however, is a timber circle, created in about 2049 BCE.
Actually, there were many more timber circles than there are stone circles. Wood, however, decomposes.
Unless, of course, the wood exists in a low-oxygen environment. From the Salt-marsh to the Sea This monument was not, in fact, built on the beach. Back in 2049 BCE, sea levels were lower than now. Back then, the site of Seahenge was a salt marsh, teeming with wildlife- and sodden, low-oxygen soil. The tree trunks decomposed above the marsh, but endured in the marshy soil. Eventually, the sea inundated the marsh, and the remains of the timber monument hibernated beneath the sea floor. Then, in 1998, two amateur archeologists on the southwestern coast of England found some bronze axe heads and espied some unusual bits of wood sticking up from the sand. Sea tides had scooped away the sand and exposed the stubs of tree trunks. They notified the local museum, and experts quickly realized the significance of their find.
Oak trees do not grow in salt marshes, and it is thought that the trees were transported quite a long distance. The fact that a timber circle was preserved at all was noteworthy. But what makes Seahenge so astonishing is the up-turned oak tree in its center. The Inverted Oak Tree The oak tree trunk is a much larger tree than the rest; it measures 8 feet and weighs over a ton. As soon as the wood of the trunk and timbers were exposed to the air, they started to deteriorate rapidly. They were all removed and went through an elaborate preservation process, involving fresh water tanks, a special wax, and polyethylene glycol, which gradually strengthened the cell structure of the wood.
Sky Burial A sky burial is when human remains are left to decompose with the help of carrion birds. It's a practice most notable in Tibet and historically with some North American tribes. The remains are situated in some way to facilitate consumption by birds, and discourage consumption by larger animals, which would dismember and move the body around. The point is to have the remains excarnated, without being totally ravaged. Sometimes the body is elevated on a platform or tree. In the case of Seahenge, the remains were placed in the bowl-like shape of the tree root system, then the protective timber circle was constructed to keep larger animals away. The Tree of Life and Death But none of this answers the question: Why an inverted tree? Why not just a platform like what is in Holme II, another timber circle only 100 meters away? It could be that the tree root system simply created that bowl-like shape, suitable for cradling human remains. But I don’t think so. It seems to me it’s meant to imply the tree continues downward under the earth, into the underworld. My interpretation may be influenced by what I have learned about The Journey of the Sun, a Nordic Bronze Age theology, where it is believed the sun travels across the sky during the day, and then returns under the earth to rise again the next day. (To learn more about The Journey of the Sun, read my blog entries about The Sun’s Nocturnal Return, The Nebra Sky Disc, and Tree Burial I & II.) The Seahenge monument is from the Neolithic, and predates the Bronze Age by many centuries. But it still implies to me that there was a conception of an underworld, a place where the deceased go, mimicking the sun’s decent. This idea of cycles- day and night, life and death- is echoed in the inverted tree, symbolizing an upside-down world. Having said all this, my art isn’t just about objects and places from the past; it’s also about the passage of time and how we regard these objects and places now. So, even though this monument was created in a salt marsh, and wasn’t some beach driftwood sculpture, it’s inundation by the sea effects my imagination. The moment I saw images of it, I couldn’t help but envision this inverted oak tree as living under the sea, upside down in a subterranean ocean. My Artistic Process I am not actually that great of a shopper. I know it seems strange to think of this activity as a skill, but believe me, it is. My husband excels at shopping. He seems to relish it, knows what he wants, and never wanders into a store half-cocked. I, on the other hand, often launch forth without researching, without calling, just wandering out assuming that whatever it is I want will just be there waiting for me. This time was such a moment. I have been really good and disciplined about CALLING the art store before going to make sure they have the panel size I want. But this time, for some reason, I didn't. I just went. Following the visual impression in my mind, I wanted a 36x24 panel. They didn't have it. But when I am in this state of mind, it is difficult for me to accept the brutal fact that I should have called and now I have to go to another art store... or change my plans.
When done, I started to create bubble-like marks below. I did this by spraying or sprinkling rubbing alcohol on the acrylic paint, waiting a moment, then rubbing it off. The alcohol temporarily breaks down the acrylic so that it can be removed. The result is a speckling effect. I also dipped plastic lids of different sizes in rubbing alcohol, placed them on the panel to create little circles of alcohol, and then rubbing that off. The effect looks like a transparent bubble. After working on that top half for a while, I had to tackle the under-water tree.
But in this case, the tree is upside down. But the main act of painting was not the tree itself, but the water around it. Again using rubbing alcohol, I misted the panel, then used a rag to scrub away paint slightly, creating a back-lit effect around the tree. Using this technique, I created a luminous, sparkling atmosphere. Cycles of Life and Death As is so often the case in this series of Archeology Art, my subject ultimately is about the Life/Death cycle. We humans commonly reassure ourselves by believing that we don’t really die. Our loved ones still exist somewhere, and that when we die, we will go there too. Some visions on the afterlife are pretty bleak, some are frightening, and some are comforting. But it’s almost universal to believe in something other than the notion that when we die, we are simply… gone. It sounds macabre, and often it is. But just as often it is life-affirming, not nihilistic. Especially when the exploration of life's cycles results in monuments, or simple paintings, of beauty and wonder. ** There has been real controversy related to the excavation and removal of Seahenge. Neo-pagan groups have stated that it desecrated the intentions of the ancestors. Partly because of this, Holme II- another timber circle built nearby at the same time as Seahenge- has been left in situ. It's deterioration, due to the elements and its exposure to oxygen, is being studied by archeologists.
The Sun's Nocturnal Return 30x30 Acrylic, charcoal, conte, archival pen on collage on panel.
My Artistic Process
But, surprisingly... But then I watched an online lecture about the petroglyphs and learned that the red paint is a modern treatment, and that if the petroglyphs are left clear, but photographed with raked light (such as dawn, sunset, or at night with a single light source,) the viewer can have a far richer experience. This image is from a site named Tanum Sotetorp in Sweden. It depicts a solar ship, with two horned creatures with axes and swords flanking a crew of anonymous, peg-like rowers. Hovering above the ship is a man or creature or god executing a back-bend or a flip. I learned doing Tree Burial I that a dancer doing a back-bend may have been symbolic of the sun on it's return journey, a reversal, a cycle. It seemed perfect for The Sun's Nocturnal Return. Using charcoal and white chalk, I was able to produce a more satisfying rendition of the solar boat.
I also went to town elaborating on the water-sky marks that look like splashes, bubbles, or heavenly bodies. I did this by spraying or sprinkling rubbing alcohol on the acrylic paint, waiting a moment, then rubbing it off. The alcohol temporarily breaks down the acrylic so that it can be removed. The result is the speckling effect. I love doing this. It's so fun. Adding Text Next, I engaged with the text. Using some typewriter-style stencils, I wrote text across the sky and under the sea. It is a bit off-kilter, and uneven in its color, as if your typewriter became possessed and tried to send you messages from beyond. Across the top and the bottom on the piece, I inserted text, as if a storyteller was accompanying the visual language of my art. Next, I added the same text using gold "interference" paint. Interference paint has a pearlescent, iridescent effect that changes depending on the angle you view it, and is very difficult to photograph. I also enclosed the back-bending figure in an iridescent orb, reminiscent of the sun. I bandied back and forth with how pronounced or obscured all the lettering would be. A lot of painting, then wiping off. In addition to the sky-sea text, I included text in reference to the Hjortspring Boat. in contrast to the crazy, possessed typewriter font in the sea-sky, this text is very clear, calm, and of this world. Utimately, I have created a tiny, animate world, where the stars leap across the cosmos, the sun is ferried by a boat full of oarsmen, and we on the earthly plane try with our orderly plans to make sense of it all.
Tree Burial II is a veritable layer cake of symbols and artistic impulses. Follow along to untangle this gritty, glorious web. Tree Burial II is a continuation of images and concepts I developed for Tree Burial I and The Nebra Sky Disc. It is a free-wheeling jazz riff on elements I gleaned during research for these pieces, elements including, but not limited to:
You can learn more about the two pieces that inspired all this crazy scientist research by reading the blog entries I have written for them. Click on their titles just below. The Nebra Sky Disc Tree Burial I Cosmological Seacraft In my research I learned about something called The Journey of the Sun. With the assistance of various cosmological creatures, the Sun traverses the arch of the sky, and at night, completes its return journey beneath the land and sea to reemerge the following day. This cycle of light and dark, day and night, symbolizes the cyclical nature of life and death. This led me to learn more about ancient boat construction, and the various experimental archeology projects that seek to reconstruct found boat remains. Sun Spirals
Anni Brøgger is a professional dancer who did her own form of experimental archeology. She performed a dance wearing a copy of Egtved Girl's costume. During the dance, the sun glinted and danced through the spirals on the shiny bronze belt plate. In a time with no lights and very little reflective metal, it must have seemed like magic. My Artistic Process Confession: I tend to overthink things.
Not so, with this piece. Tree Burial II started its life as a 48x40 drawing on a roll of watercolor paper. After working on it a bit, I changed course and purchased an even larger, 60x40 wood panel, which became Tree Burial I. I put the original drawing aside. But then I was seized by the desire to... tear it up! Visual Impressions People sometimes ask where I get my ideas. Well, I often get visual impressions in my mind, which serve as a launching point.
Geometric Tendencies I find myself attracted to square and double-square formats. In this case, I used a 48x24 panel, which I stained with burnt umber to bring out the wood grain, referring to the wood of the tree and tree coffin.
I love the fishes twirling and consuming each other, with the calm presence of the Madonna in the center. It brings to mind the Ouroboros, another symbol of the life/death cycle. Solar Boat Petroglyphs Spurned on by my fascination with The Journey of the Sun, I sought out Nordic solar boat images that would suit. Most surviving examples are from Scandinavian Petroglyphs.
Following a Trail
An addendum to this entry is that Tree Burial I begat yet another piece about boats, stars, and sun-cycles entitled The Sun's Nocturnal Return. You can see and read about it HERE. Tree Burial II 48x24 Acrylic, collage, charcoal, conte, archival ink, acrylic heavy gel on panel Appendix: Want to make an infinity symbol? For a MAC, press Option 5 on the keyboard. For everybody else, hold the ALT key and type 236 on the number keypad on the right of your keyboard. ∞
This large 60x40 painting is inspired from am amalgamation of several different tree burials from the Nordic Bronze Age. Tree trunk, or log coffins were not an uncommon way for elites to be buried. Versions of the practice have been found in Europe, Africa, China and even Australia. In Europe, it was practiced from prehistoric times all the way up to the Medieval period. The first time I saw an image of a tree burial, what grabbed my attention is the thought of something so grand, and well, so vertical would be felled, and buried beneath the earth, eternally horizontal, to intern the dead. With a modern, conventional coffin, the tree is no longer a tree, but a series of dressed planks, fashioned into a box.
The Egtved Girl In 1921, near the town of Egtved, a farmer dug and spread soil from a mound on his farm. In it he found a large, recumbent oak tree trunk. Log coffins had been being unearthed for about a century in Denmark, so, he knew what he had run into. He wrote a letter to the National Museum of Denmark, telling them what he’d found, with a request that they hurry up and come take a look, because, after all, he had work to do.
Grave Goods Egtved Girl's age and gender are unique in such a rich grave. From her teeth, we can tell she was about 16-18 years old when she died. In the coffin with her are:
But it is her clothing that makes her so famous. She wore a short, wool blouse. She had a quite short skirt made up of cords, so that when she moved, you could probably see her nether regions through it. (This caused a scandal back in 1921 when it was discovered!) But her signature fashion feature was her bronze belt plate.
My Creative Process In making Tree Burial, I chose to include elements from various tree burials, though Egtved is the main one.
These I traced onto my panel using transfer paper, which I then re-drew with pencil and paint. Next I worked on that belt plate. I painted it with bronze colored paint. It looked quite arresting there, near the center of the painting! Getting the spirals correct took a bit of time. Life, Death and Wonder Presumably, we make art so that someone will hang it on their wall. So, sometimes I have to pause and ask myself; why would someone want a large painting of a burial, no matter how interesting it might be? In my series, Archeology Art, I find myself dealing with some pretty macabre subjects, such as burials and remains. But I guess, I just don't experience them that way. In pre-modern times, death was all around us, all the time. The loss of a loved one is difficult for anyone, regardless of how frequently death visits. However, people in the past seemed to have a very different relationship to human remains, handling them with aplomb, even with creativity. They dressed them, provided for them, moved them around, took them from one grave to another, disarticulated their bones, even took pieces of them home to live with them and their families, a sort of eternal house guest. Our modern world has moved away from this cozy relationship with the dead. This shift is understandable; it's human nature to avoid pain, especially the existential terror that accompanies losing someone. And yet, it is just another way that we have been cut off from the natural world. In Tree Burial I, I blend elements of death (coffin, corpse,) and life (tree, yarrow, sun-spirals,) along with tokens from the modern excavation. I creatively explore the theme of the life/death cycle in my unique, modern way. Video of My Cool Compass... I completed two versions of “The Adorant.” They are based on a fresco in ancient Akrotiri. To read more about Akrotiri, and the other art I have made based on it, click HERE. One is 12x6 inches, and the other is 20x16 inches. The frescos of Akrotiri are just crumbled vestiges, and had to be reassembled like a puzzle. To emulate the effect of the fragmented frescos, I slathered fiber paste and molding paste over heavy watercolor paper. When this was dry, I drew and painted the figures, I then tore the image up, and reassembled it on a panel. Tearing up my art was strangely therapeutic! You can see a video of me doing this below!
I am enchanted by the image of this woman gazing out from her island home, to watch these splendid sea crafts cruising by. A special sneak peak into one of the more fun moments of being an artist... In 1999, two looters* plundered a mound atop Mittelburg Hill near Nebra, Germany. It was quite the payload. They found two bronze swords, two axe heads, a chisel, spiral armbands, and a strange, circular object.
Archeologists established it was created about 1800-1600 BCE- about 3,700 years ago. BTW, I know you want to call it the Nebula Sky Disk- but it's NEBRA. The Nebra Sky Disk stands alone as a beautiful object, yet it seems to also have a purpose and function aside from mere aesthetic enjoyment. What does the disk signify, and what was it for? Experts have debated this since its discovery, and there are conflicting interpretations. But there are a few theories that are generally agreed upon. It is believed that the Nebra Sky Disk is an astronomical calendar, depicting moons, star constellations, the positions of the winter and summer solstices, and a “solar ship,” associated with an ancient belief that the sun was carried across the sky by a cosmic boat. The disk was in use for several centuries before it was buried, and went it through multiple incarnations. Phase One: First, the gold dots where applied, along with the gold circle and crescent. Phase Two: At some later date, the two parenthesis shaped arcs were added. Phase Three: Then, even later, the asymmetrical arc at the bottom was added. Phase Four: THEN, several centuries after all that, its perimeter was perforated with about 40 small holes. Phase… Five? The alterations to the disk implies that the significance and use of the disk CHANGED over time. Phase One: What Day Is It?
The Lunisolar Calendar Okay. This is really difficult for me to wrap my head around, so bear with me. A solar calendar is meant to express the earth going around the Sun. It is great for keeping track the days of the year. A lunar calendar is meant to express how often the moon goes around the earth, and it is great for keeping track of weeks and months. The problem is, they don’t line up.
The Nebra Sky Disk represents one solution- AND it was done before this society (the Unetice culture) had any writing system. The disk "...served as a reminder of when it was necessary to synchronize the lunar and solar years by inserting a leap month. This phenomenon occurred when the three-and-a-half-day-old moon—the crescent moon on the disc—was visible at the same time as the Pleiades." - Jarrett A. Lobell, Archeology Magazine Whew. Is your brain exhausted? I know mine is! Phase Two: Happy Solstice! It’s well known that back in the day, celebrating the solstice, especially the winter solstice, wasn’t just a party. It was essential. You had to bring the sun back, or you’d all die. How do you know when it’s the solstice? Who knows when it’s time? Additionally, chemical analysis reveals that the gold of the arcs was sourced from thousands of miles away from that of the moon and stars- another indication they were applied at different times. Yay science! The arcs express an 82° span, which is exactly the span of the setting sun on the winter and summer solstices, when seen from Northern Europe.
You’d be able to tell when the winter solstice was nigh. Phase Three: But What Does It Mean? Many years after all of this, an enigmatic additional arc was added to the bottom of the disk. If I’m the original Sky Disk, to heck with it. Whaddaya gonna do? I’m the Sky Disk. Screw you. But if I’m just little ol’ Leslie Peterson Sapp, doing a representation of the Sky Disk, I CAN’T make something that looks like a happy face. It simply can’t be done. So, what do I do? I investigate what this weird little thing is. Unlike the other two arcs on the disk, it’s asymmetrical. Furthermore, it has adornments. If you look closely, it has two lines that follow the shape of the arc, and the sides of the arc have small, feathery lines, like the legs of a centipede. Experts believe it is a representation of a solar boat. What’s that? A solar boat, barge, or ship is a common element the in the cosmology of many cultures across various places and times. This symbol embodies the belief that the sun is carried across the sky in a magical, celestial, maritime vessel. When the sun sets, it continues its journey through the underworld, to return into view the following dawn. I admit, the arc on the Nebra Sky Disk doesn’t look much like a boat. In fact, the tiny, feathery lines are thought to represent OARS. (Maybe the artisan who made it had never actually SEEN a boat?) I was doubtful, until I started to see other, contemporaneous representations of solar boats. By studying these different Bronze Age, Northern European artifacts, experts have been able to piece together a generalized belief system. These artifacts include rock art, golden boats, golden hats, bronze razors, standards and more. If this little arc at the bottom of the disk is indeed a solar boat, it would mean that the usage of the Nebra Sky Disk had evolved over the centuries from a magical, but practical calendar device, to a cosmological totem. Phase Four: Mascot
Phase… Five? Burial.
The practice of depositing precious objects by burial, or by sinking in bogs or bodies of water, is a worldwide, timeless ritual, repeated ad infinitum through the ages. It seems to reflect a basic human impulse. This was a rich offering to the gods, whomever they might have been. It may have been a way to bring closure to this very important symbol, even though its relevance may have run its course. Who Controls Time? Time does not change. The earth swings in its elliptical path around the sun, spinning around on its axis, unending for millions of years. BUT, how we conceive of time is a social construct, and it has changed over the centuries. Hunter-gatherer communities followed the food where it went, telling stories about creation and the cosmos as they went along. Time was the water they swam in. But, as our societies became more “complex,” and we became reliant on farming, the “specialization” of roles grew, and from this came… hierarchy. Hierarchy and ownership. Territory and access to resources. Different days of the year became significant, with milestones and celebrations. Who controls time? Who knows what day it is? The people who understood the workings of this disk were magical people indeed. Very special people, whom others in the clan would trust and rely on. The Nebra Sky Disk is a beautiful object, and like many beautiful artifacts of this world, including the ones I make, are made possible through specialization, hierarchy, and access to resources. It is of this world, and yet it is transcendent. My Creative Process
From this angle, you can see that the disk itself is also raised, because it is made from that thin piece of circular wood. Constellations I have never been into astronomy or astrology. Aside from a certain fascination with moon phases, I have stood back and watched others' interest in it, sort of wishing I could get interested, too. But through doing this piece, I have started to feel like there may be a hook for me.
After having just a lovely time creating my constellations above, I found myself struggling with what to do with that darn smiley face. Solar Boat Struggles Since I didn't want to recreate the "solar boat" element as is, I naturally looked to other representations of solar boats, and ran into a boat-load of problems. Finally, I take the whole darn thing out and start over. Eventually, the geometric elements of the piece began to replace my preoccupation with boats. The sharp, white lines stretching across the piece, as well as connecting the star constellations, are actually scratched through the paint to the white panel beneath. The criss-cross lines represent the 82° span of the solstices. Additionally, the V-shaped lines emanating from the bottom of the piece also represent 82°. The geometry is also reflected by the dimensions of the piece: the perfect 24x24 panel, with the circular panel, perfectly placed in the middle. This evokes a sense of stability and calm. Somehow, my enchantment with moon phases emerged, and I realized depicting the moon phases at the bottom of the piece would create that compositional balance I was searching for, as well as support the narrative and use of the disk in ancient times. Below, there is a video of the finished piece of The Nebra Sky Disk, so as to showcase its glimmer and dimensionality- a still photograph simply does not capture what it is like to see it in person. -Addendum- Crime Does Not Pay! * The two looters, who damaged the disk with their shovels, sold it on the black market. It changed hands multiple times before it was recovered by a sting operation in 2002. The looters were sentenced to four months and ten months in jail. Upon appeal, the Appeals Court raised their sentences to six and twelve months. (I simply adore art crime stories!) Further Reading The Nebra Sky Disk - Archeology Magazine, Jarrett A. Lobell, May/June 2019 https://www.archaeology.org/issues/337-1905/features/7543-maps-germany-nebra-sky-disc The Nebra Sky Disc: decoding a prehistoric vision of the cosmos https://the-past.com/feature/the-nebra-sky-disc-decoding-a-prehistoric-vision-of-the-cosmos/ The Nebra Sky Disk - Ancient Map of the Stars https://www.worldhistory.org/article/235/the-nebra-sky-disk---ancient-map-of-the-stars/ The Journey of the Sun Across the Sky - National Museum of Denmark
https://en.natmus.dk/historical-knowledge/denmark/prehistoric-period-until-1050-ad/the-bronze-age/the-sun-chariot/the-journey-of-the-sun-across-the-sky/ As I am wont to do lately, I also started a small, handmade book as a way to capture thoughts and work out my ideas. This is a book about my art piece named The Nebra Sky Disk. To read about this piece, and learn about the archeological find it is based on, read this blog entry HERE.
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