WORRIED

Dante Gabriel Rossetti painted Proserpine (Roman mythological in 1874.  In Greek mythology she was called Persephone, the daughter of Zeus and Demeter.  Hades wanted to marry Persephone.  He spoke to Zeus.  An agreement was made.  Yet, Hades got hasty and took her to the underworld too soon.  Zeus spoke to Hades - another agreement was made.  If she did not eat the fruit of the pomegranate, she could come and go as she wanted.  Of course, with no other food available, she took a bite.  She was starving.  In desperation, her mother, Demeter, interceded and spoke to Zeus.  Another consultation was held between Zeus and Hades. The final agreement was that she could spend half of the year with her mother, her companion.  Then, she had to spend the other half with Hades, because she was now the Queen of the Underworld. Therefore, when she comes out of the underworld, Spring and Summer happen.  Proserpine is the goddess of spring, fertility, and summer.  When she must go to the underworld, harvest (autumn) begins. Through winter she dwells in the underworld.  Demeter, her mother, is the goddess of the harvest and mourns the loss of her daughter. Therefore, winter comes, and the world is cold. Nothing grows when Proserpine is gone.

Dark and light/winter and summer, both often symbolize life experiences.  Darkness/cold/feeling dead - can preside at times in our lives at times.  Courage and grace are needed to withstand the troubled seasons of life.        

PUBLIC DOMAIN IMAGE: {{PD-US}} tag: encircled capital "C", diagonal line through it

Proserpine (1874; model: Jane Morris) by Dante Gabriel Rossetti located in the Tate Gallery; London, England; Date: 1874. 

LINK: Image & Information

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dante_Gabriel_Rossetti_-_Proserpine.jpg

Exhibition:

"Members Gallery", San Antonio Art League and Museum, April - June 2022

Photographer: 

Clarice Young Hess