As the darkness closes in, and the snow drifts down to the frozen ground, my art-making slows. I focus on crafting for loved ones. Making toys. Writing and painting holiday cards. Decorating gifts with cedar boughs and cinnamon sticks. Joining in on the festivities, creating warmth, and becoming more present with family. I wish you a merry winter holiday. I hope it's filled with the magic of the season and much love.
If you are looking for a gift for family or friends, I offer custom portraits, surprise art, illustrated poems, and hand drawn coloring books on my website:
Go check it out! I'd love to create meaningful art for you and yours this holiday season.
I love learning about the ancestral, traditional, and shamanic roots of Christmas/Yule and the symbolism of it all. I build little altars, light candles, decorate with nature, and trinkets that I find meaningful. I enjoy the ritual of honoring the spirit of the home. (And let's be honest, making my home aesthetically pleasing for the long, cold, and dark winter helps with the seasonal depression I know is coming.) If you're curious, and you'd love some psychedelic mythos infused into your holiday, why don'tcha look into how Amanita Muscaria (toad stool mushrooms 🍄), Conifers 🎄, artic shamans 🧑🎄, and reindeer 🦌 all contribute to the modern symbolism of Christmas. If you're not someone who welcomes long buried and covered up shamanic and psychedelic roots to one of the most culturally dominant holidays ever then wtf?! Learn more here:
And here:
I will be getting back to all the wonderful winter magic now, (eating mushrooms?!) I hope you will slow down and indulge in all that makes this season magic for you too. And maybe buy some art to spruce up your home and make it slightly more bearable while you battle your mind and the lack of sunlight this winter, Haha! Happy Holidays! See ya in 2023!
I hope your winter season is filled with cozy candle lit magical dark nights. Sending joy to you on this long winter night,
Tiana
I made this winter solstice stop motion years ago with these felt toys I made for my daughter. The winter hag births the son/sun and the reindeer flys it across the sky. The winter folks celebrate the rebirth of the sun after the longest night!
P.S. If you have an interest in entheogens (aka psychedelics) here are a few good reads:
•Cleansing the Doors of Perception: The Religious Significance of Entheogenic Plants and Chemicals by Huston Smith
•Plant Intelligence and the Imaginal Realm: Beyond the Doors of Perception into the Dreaming of Earth by Stephen Harrod Buhner
•The Psychedelic Explorer's Guide by James Fadiman
• When Santa was a Shaman: The Ancient Origins of Santa Claus & the Christmas Tree
by Tony Van Renterghem
• The Cosmic Serpent: DNA and the Origins of Knowledge by Jeremy Narby
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