Initiation Painting

A white cow stands, neck craned down to a yellow snake on the ground. Behind the cow, a yellow sun that could be either setting or rising, The initiates are gathered to gain secret knowledge, symbolised by the sun, the cow and the snake. The knowledge lies in the relationship between these three, of which the sun is representative of Life Force, the cow: Wealth of the Earth, and the snake: Spirit. The idea for the painting came about after attending initiation ceremonies of the Xhosa people, for the circumcision of young men in the Transkei, South Africa. Arches, cold pressed fine grain paper, allows a crisp edge to forms, and flat, luminous washes of colour, conducive to the iconographic imagery of the painting.