A Story painting by Rebecca Lee Kunz from her 2021 Exhibit STORY PAINTINGS: A Mythological Narrative told by the Creatures of the Anthropocene
at the Lloyd Kiva New Gallery at the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts ©2021
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In harmonious balance, this female icon is both of the underworld and the celestial. She has the almost mythic superpower to carry with her these two very different worlds. As she arises from the rich deep earth, she also embodies the astral.
In her heart chakra lies the nocturnal moth. According to Cherokee mythology, nocturnal creatures were given the superpowers to see and move about during the night. While staying awake, the moth sees things that only appear in the depths of the night. This moth lives within the woman’s psyche because she too has waded through the darkness of the night. As a result of her willingness to brave the dark night she, like the moth, has been gifted the supernatural.
With two raven allies on each side, she is escorted on her nocturnal journey in perfect symmetry. She has earned the rite of passage to Return Home. Returning to our eternal home is a hard-earned skill that cannot be unlearned. Though she may forget from time to time, she will always return.
As part of my own creative spiritual practice, I ask for images. In turn, I work with these images, along with symbology and mythology, to create artwork that (hopefully) moves people. Every once-in-a-while these visions come to me fully formed. This image was one of them. I feel it is my job to interpret these images so that we can learn from them. They are a tool of healing and growth.
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“Return Us Home” is one of the stories that was gifted to me in a vision. I am humbled to be the translator of this story.
