MYTHS AND REBIRTHS: randezvous at the tavern

 RENDEZVOUS AT THE TAVERN

‘Medussa and Melissa :Table for Two’ is the 5th painting I have done so far, from my ‘Rendezvous at the Tavern’ series. The premise of these paintings is to bring together powerful characters from the smorgasbord of Hellenic culture in the setting of a tavern, where real, imaginary, historical, mythical and folkloric women sit to have a conversation and share a meal. TABLE FOR TWO is the first commission from the group, The characters chosen to meet in the tavern were not intuited entirely by me. The dinner guests emerged instead out of a conversation at the studio with the patron. My input was secondary to her desire, intuition and personal process.

By bringing them into being on the canvas, new perspectives, connections and narratives are forged. The combinations of women ‘parea’ defy logic, time and space as well as politics, and tradition. Pre-existing stories about them are usurped by virtue of an uncharacteristic setting and new associations. This Independence gives them a chance to tell a new story, their own.

As a viewer you are placed overlooking a distant table, trying to eavesdrop or guess what is being said. Their body language, expressions and gestures are clues for you to assume and speculate both on their relationship and the things spoken and shared between them. Maybe you are closer; invited to sit across from the protagonists, an eager silent guest invited to listen in on their intimate conversation.

At this table two women from the depths of Greek mythology sit next to each other. At first glance they represent the darkest and the lightest of fates. MEDUSA, though a priestess, is also known as a Gorgan. She activates terror while MELISSA, a forest nymph, conjures imagery of delicious golden nectar. A brief outline of the standard myth of these two is merely an introduction. Both beckon further research as there are different versions of their origin and with the typical layers, twists and turns keeping their myths fluid. In spite of this a note of the typical tale will help to lay basic foundations for unpacking the artwork’s inherent symbolism. 

MEDUSA a virgin priestess of Godess Athena is raped by Poseidon in the temple she resides in. Athena punishes her by changing her into a snake headed beast. Any man who lays his eyes on her face (not his hands on) is instantly turned to stone. Another version suggests Athena does it to protect her from the lust of men.

MELISSA (a modern Greek name for bees also an ancient Greek name for nymphs), is the name of the forest nymphs who was shown by the gods how to collect nectar from the bees and also the name of the Cretan princess who fed goats milk to baby Zeus to help keep him alive. Melissae were also the priestesses of the goddess Demeter and Persephone. 

And so we arrive to see both women as priestesses, holders of ancient and sacred rights, figures of power and beauty. An embodiment of the sacred feminine. This only serves to open our imagination to the story of their meeting, and their friendship. 

The more you delve, the more golden threads you find. A beautiful metaphor for the interrelatedness of things is the trail of intricate honey golden lines the bees have created in the space of the canvas. You are led to ponder on the delicate connection between all the elements of the painting. The obvious, the not so obvious and the yet to be discovered are all laid out for the viewer. 

Goddess ATHENA hovers in the back between them. Initially I had conceived her as the waitress bringing a silver tray of food concealed by a large lid. During the process of painting her the dish landed in a prominent position on the table and the formidable goddess was pushed back into the ethers as a misty, ghostly figure overlooking the scene. Her role as a servant is no longer obvious, though enough of a suggestion remains to leave her authority at the very least in question.

Another strong symbology in the painting is that of heads. Gruesome decapitated heads and symbolic birthing of new life from heads. Evolution, ascension of a greater power is repeatedly described in Greek mythology and beyond: Athena from the head of Zeus, Pegasus from the head of Medusa. It can be seen as a metaphor for rebirth, shedding of skin like the snake that is cooked around the edges of the tavern table, the phoenix rising from the ashes etc. The religious depiction of St John the Baptist in his greatest sacrifice is often depicted in icons on a silver platter, not unlike the one in the painting, Athena is also depicted here with a curious golden line that the bees have circled around her neck, like a fine, lazer cut! 

And what will these two women feast on? What are they going to ingest? digest? what nourishment do they seek? What is under that serving dish lid? Poseidon the perpetrator? The brother of Zeus ..these musings tempt a line of revenge and justice against the masculine, perhaps against the masculine Athena, We are not entirely convinced of which course of action our minds and interpretations should take. Two goblets containing gold are placed in easy reach, yet another invitation.

The painting keeps us hovering and moving around the elements , trying to decipher the conversation, the meanings, of which there is little doubt, to be many. We notice that Melissa has a hand to the side of her ‘head’ whispering something across the table, perhaps intended to be out of earshot of Athena. Medusa smiles like Mona Lisa. I think they are friends and one is about to make the other laugh…how loud I wonder? 

After the lines of thought, of curiosity and debate subside we are quickly reminded of the expressions, the mood, the gestures and sensations that the painting is made of. It’s very presence is sensory. A strong dimension of it is less thinking and more feeling. And we are now led to hear sounds…the magical sound of bees, the hissing of snakes , the rustling of leaves, the distant hum of conversation , cutlery, and other patrons. So much to say still , pages and pages of profound and minor connections and reimaginings to unravel. 

A final note is that Medusa painted in a monochromatic palette was modeled on a petrified/marble sculpture of a virgin. Her veil covering her face heralded as a great artistic accomplishment in 19th Century marble carving. In her sensual and enigmatic manifestation on canvas, it feels inevitable that soon the veil will be lifted from her cocoon-like form, followed by more cycles of death and rebirth. Although they can’t stop speculation from others, the women brought together at this table author their own story. it seems certain that (Me)dusa and (Me)lissa command the scene and that a ‘table for two’ is only a beginning,.

Giovanni Strazza, “The Veiled Virgin,” 1850

Efrossini Chaniotis , MAY 2023