ARTISTI INSIEME

...by the sea..

Artisti insieme

Mai pensato di aver scattato una foto che poteva essere un quadro? Perché no? Ora basta inviarla all’artista che trasporta il tuo capolavoro nel mondo della pittura. Che sia un paesaggio oppure la persona amata, una tempesta oppure una bella giornata al sole, scegli di immortalare i tuoi ricordi nel modo più bello: fai parte del processo artistico. 

Consulenza gratuita.

pagina Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/arteszabo

mail: szabokrisztina@libero.it; cristachiara@gmail.com

WhatsApp: +39 370 715 9669

-...on holiday...

Te is művész vagy

Felmerült már valaha benned, hogy olyan remek fotót kattintottál el, ami akár egy festmény is lehetne? Semmi akadálya! Küldd el a képet nekem, és én festménnyé varázsolom a remekművedet. Lehet tájkép vagy a szerelmed, viharos égbolt vagy a nyaralás egy felethetetlen pillanata. Tedd az emlékedet méltó keretbe és legyél részese a művészi folyamatnak.

Ingyenes konzultáció.

Facebook oldal: https://www.facebook.com/arteszabo

mail: szabokrisztina@libero.it; cristachiara@gmail.com

WhatsApp: +39 370 715 9669

in Rome

You are an artist too

Have you ever thought about that the photo you have taken was so excellent that it could be a painting? There's no problem. Send your picture to me and I will make it into an art piece. It could be a landscape, picture of your loved one, a stormy sky or an unforgettable moment of your holiday. Put your memory in a worthy fitting frame and be part of the art process.

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/arteszabo

mail: szabokrisztina@libero.it; cristachiara@gmail.com

WhatsApp: +39 370 715 9669

prezzi / árak / prices

acquarello su carta / akvarell papíron / watercolor on paper
18x24 cm: 30 €

20x30 cm: 50 €
30x40 cm: 100 €

acrilico su tela / akril vásznon / acrylic on canvas
30x40 cm: 200 €
40x50 cm: 250€
50x70 cm: 400€

...on bicycle...

DA OGGI SI POSSONO ACQUISTARE I MIEI QUADRI ON LINE CON LA SICUREZZA DI PAYPAL

ART ON WEB - SPEDIZIONE IN TUTTO IL MONDO




BUY WITH THE SECURITY OF PAYPAL - SHIPPING WORLDWIDE

EXHIBITION / MOSTRA

SEA OF BIANCO / MARE DI BIANCO

oil on canvas 120x100 cm

€ 1800.00

Man and the Sea

by Charles Baudelaire

Always, unfettered man, you will cherish the sea!

The sea your mirror, you look into your mind

In its eternal billows surging without end,

And as its gulfs are bitter, so must your spirit be.

You plunge with joy into this image of your own:

You hug it with your eyes and arms; your heart

Forgets for a time its noisy beat, becomes a part

Of a greater, more savage and less tameable moan.

In your own ways, you both are brooding and discreet:

Man, no one has mapped your chasm's hidden floor,

Oh sea, no one knows your inmost riches, for

Your jealousy hides secrets none can repeat.

As the uncounted swarm of centuries gathers

You two have fought without pity or remorse, both

From sheer love of the slaughter and of death

Oh, eternal wrestlers, oh, relentless brothers!

SLEEPING CUPID AND PSYCHE / AMORE DORMIENTE E PSYCHE

oil on canvas 80x120 cm

€ 2.500

Cupid and Psyche

A stunningly beautiful girl, Psyche, is born after two older sisters. People throughout the land worship her beauty so deeply that they forget about the goddess Venus. Venus becomes angry that her temples are falling to ruin, so she plots to ruin Psyche. She instructs her son, Cupid, to pierce the girl with an arrow and make her fall in love with the most vile, hideous man alive. But when Cupid sees Psyche in her radiant glory, he shoots himself with the arrow instead.

Meanwhile, Psyche and her family become worried that she will never find a husband, for although men admire her beauty, they always seem content to marry someone else. Psyche's father prays to Apollo for help, and Apollo instructs her to go to the top of a hill, where she will marry not a man but a serpent. Psyche bravely follows the instructions and falls asleep on the hill. When she wakes up, she discovers a stunning mansion. Going inside, she relaxes and enjoys fine food and luxurious treatment. At night, in the dark, she meets and falls in love with her husband.

She lives happily with him, never seeing him, until one day he tells her that her sisters have been crying for her. She begs to see them, but her husband replies that it would not be wise to do so. Psyche insists that they visit, and when they do, they become extremely jealous of Psyche's beautiful mansion and lush quarters. They deduce that Psyche has never seen her husband, and they convince her that she must sneak a look. Confused and conflicted, Psyche turns on a lamp one night as her husband lies next to her.

When she sees the beautiful Cupid asleep on her bed, she weeps for her lack of faith. Cupid awakens and deserts her because Love cannot live where there is no trust. Cupid returns to his mother, Venus, who again decides to enact revenge on the beautiful girl.

Psyche, meanwhile, journeys all over the land to find Cupid. She decides to go to Venus herself in a plea for love and forgiveness, and when she finally sees Venus, the great goddess laughs aloud. Venus shows her a heap of seeds and tells her that she must sort them all in one night's time if she wants to see Cupid again. This task is impossible for one person alone, but ants pity Psyche and sort the seeds for her. Shocked, Venus then orders Psyche to sleep on the cold ground and eat only a piece of bread for dinner. But Psyche survives the night easily. Finally, Venus commands her to retrieve a golden fleece from the river. She almost drowns herself in the river because of her sorrow, but a reed speaks to her and suggests that she collect the golden pieces of fleece from the thorny briar that catches it. Psyche follows these instructions and returns a sizable quantity to Venus. The amazed goddess, still at it, now orders Psyche to fill a flask from the mouth of the River Styx. When Psyche reaches the head of the river, she realizes that this task seems impossible because the rocks are so dangerous. This time, an eagle helps her and fills the flask. Venus still does not give in. She challenges Psyche to go into the underworld and have Persephone put some of her beauty in a box. Miraculously, Psyche succeeds.

On her way toward giving the box to Venus, she becomes curious, opens the box, and instantly falls asleep. Meanwhile, Cupid looks for Psyche and finds her sleeping. He awakens her, puts the sleeping spell back in the box, and takes her to Zeus to request her immortality. Zeus grants the request and makes Psyche an immortal goddess. She and Cupid are married. Venus now supports the marriage because her son has married a goddess—and because Psyche will no longer distract the men on earth from Venus.

Source:

Edith Hamilton, Mythology

ed. GradeSaver

PSYCHE

oil on canvas 40 x 50 cm

€ 500,00

PSYCHE

That is, "breath" or "the soul," occurs in the later times of antiquity, as a personification of the human soul, and Apuleius (Met. iv. 28, &c.) relates about her the following beautiful allegoric story. Psyche was the youngest of the three daughters of some king, and excited by her beauty the jealousy and envy of Venus (Aphrodite). In order to avenge herself, the goddess ordered Amor (Eros) to inspire Psyche with a love for the most contemptible of all men : but Amor was so stricken with her beauty that he himself fell in love with her. He accordingly conveyed her to some charming place, where he, unseen and unknown, visited her every night, and left her as soon as the day began to dawn. Psyche might have continued to have enjoyed without interruption this state of happiness, if she had attended to the advice of her beloved, never to give way to her curiosity, or to inquire who he was. But her jealous sisters made her believe that in the darkness of night she was embracing some hideous monster, and accordingly once, while Amor was asleep, she approached him with a lamp, and, to her amazement, she beheld the most handsome and lovely of the gods. In her excitement of joy and fear, a drop of hot oil fell from her lamp upon his shoulder. This awoke Amor, who censured her for her mistrust, and escaped. Psyche's peace was now gone all at once, and after having attempted in vain to throw herself into a river, she wandered about from temple to temple, inquiring after her beloved, and at length came to the palace of Venus. There her real sufferings began, for Venus retained her, treated her as a slave, and inmposed upon her the hardest and most humiliating labours. Psyche would have perished under the weight of her sufferings, had not Amor, who still loved her in secret, invisibly comforted and assisted her in her labours. With his aid she at last succeeded in overcoming the jealousy and hatred of Venus; she became immortal, and was united with him for ever. It is not difficult to recognise in this lovely story the idea of which it is merely the mythical embodiment, for Psyche is evidently the human soul, which is purified by passions and misfortunes, and is thus prepared for the enjoyment of true and pure happiness. In works of art Psyche is represented as a maiden with the wings of a butterfly, along with Amor in the different situations described in the allegoric story.

source: http://www.mythindex.com

DRAGONFLY / LIBELLULA

oil on canvas 40 x 50 cm

€ 500,00

PEGASUS AND CHIMAERA / PEGASO E CHIMERA

oil on canvas 120 x 100 cm

€ 3.000,00

In the city of Corinth, Glaucus is King. But the gods dislike him because he feeds his horses human flesh. Eventually the gods throw him from his chariot and have his horses eat him. It is thought that Glaucus's son is a beautiful young man named Bellerophon, but it is also rumored that the boy's father is Poseidon. More than anything, Bellerophon wants to ride Pegasus, a winged horse, so he goes to Athena's temple to pray. Athena comes to him in a dream and gives him a golden bridle which, she says, will tame the horse. It does, and Pegasus becomes Bellerophon's loyal beast.

Later, Bellerophon kills his brother entirely by accident. He goes to King Proteus for purification, which the king grants. But Bellerophon's situation becomes complicated when the king's wife takes an interest in him. Bellerophon denies the queen's advances, but the evil woman tells her husband that the boy has wronged her and must die. Proteus does not want to kill Bellerophon personally because the boy has eaten at his table, so instead he asks the boy to deliver a letter to the Lycian king.

On the back of Pegasus, Bellerophon travels easily, meets the Lycian king, and stays with him for nine wonderful days. When the king opens his letter, it has clear instructions to kill Bellerophon. But like Proteus, the Lycian king does not want to offend Zeus by acting violently towards a guest, so instead he sends Bellerophon on an impossible journey to kill a monster, Chimaera. With the help of Pegasus, however, Bellerophon kills the beast with no harm to himself. He returns to Proteus, and Proteus sends him on many more challenging adventures.

Eventually, the victorious Bellerophon wins Proteus's respect, and the king even gives the man his daughter's hand in marriage. Unfortunately, Bellerophon loses favor with the gods when he attempts to become more than human and take a place on Mount Olympus. When he tries to take the journey up to the gods’ kingdom, Pegasus throws Bellerophon off his back. Bellerophon wanders alone, "devouring his own soul," until he dies. Pegasus becomes Zeus's favorite animal, residing in the stalls of Mount Olympus and bringing thunder and lightning to him.

source: Edith Hamilton, 

Mythology

ed. GradeSaver

AURORA

oil on canvas 120 x 80 cm.

€ 1.500,00

Eos, in Latin Aurora, the goddess of the morning red, who brings up the light of day from the east. She was a daughter of Hyperion and Theia or Euryphassa, and a sister of Helios and Selene. (Hes. Theog. 371, &c.; Hom. Hymn in Sol. ii.) Ovid (Met. ix. 420, Fast. iv. 373) calls her a daughter of Pallas. At the close of night she rose front the couch of her beloved Tithonus, and on a chariot drawn by the swift horses Lampus and Phaëton she ascended up to heaven from the river Oceanus, to announce the coming light of the sun to the gods as well as to mortals. (Hom. Od. v. 1, &c., xxiii. 244; Virg. Aen. iv. 129, Georg. i. 446; Hom. Hymn in Merc. 185; Theocrit. ii. 148, xiii. 11.) In the Homeric poems Eos not only announces the coming Helios, but accompanies him throughout the day, and her career is not complete till the evening; hence she is sometimes mentioned where one would have expected Helios (Od. v. 390, x. 144); and the tragic writers completely identify her with Hemera, of whom in later times the same myths are related as of Eos. (Paus. i. 3. § 1, iii. 18. § 7.) The later Greek and the Roman poets followed, on the whole, the notions of Eos, which Homer had established, and the splendour of a southern aurora, which lasts much longer than in our climate, is a favourite topic with the ancient poets. Mythology represents her as having carried off several youths distinguished for their beauty. Thus she carried away Orion, but the gods were angry at her for it, until Artemis with a gentle arrow killed him. (Hom. Od. v. 121.) According to Apollodorus (i. 4. § 4) Eos carried Orion to Delos, and was ever stimulated by Aphrodite. Cleitus, the son of Mantius, was carried by Eos to the seats of the immortal gods (Od. xv. 250), and Tithonus, by whom she became the mother of Emathion and Memnon, was obtained in like manner. She begged of Zeus to make him immortal, but forgot to request him to add eternal youth. So long as he was young and beautiful, she lived with him at the end of the earth, on the banks of Oceanus ; and when he grew old, she nursed him, until at length his voice disappeared and his body became quite dry. She then locked the body up in her chamber, or metamorphosed it into a cricket. (Hom. Hymn. in Ven. 218, &c.; Horat. Carm. i. 22. 8, ii. 16. 30; Apollod. iii. 12. § 4; Hes. Theog. 984; Serv. ad Virg. Georg. i. 447, iii. 328, Aen. iv. 585.) When her son Memnon was going to fight against Achilles, she asked Hephaestus to give her arms for him, and when Memnon was killed, her tears fell down in the form of morning dew. (Virg. Aen. viii. 384.) By Astraeus Eos became the mother of Zephyrus, Boreas, Notus, Heosphorus, and the other stars. (Hesiod. Theog. 378.) Cephalus was carried away by her from the summit of mount Hymetttus to Syria, and by him she became the mother of Phaëton or Tithonus, the father of Phaëton; but afterwards she restored her beloved to his wife Procris. (Hes. Theog. 984; Apollod. iii. 14. § 3; Paus. i. 3. § 1; Ov. Met. vii. 703, &c.; Hygin. Fab 189; comp. CEPHALUS.) Eos was represented in the pediment of the kingly stoa at Athens in the act of carrying off Cephalus, and in the same manner she was seen on the throne of the Amyclaean Apollo. (Paus. i. 3. § 1, iii. 18. § 7.) At Olympia she was represented in the act of praying to Zeus for Memnon. (v. 22. 2.) In the works of art still extant, she appears as a winged goddess or in a chariot drawn by four horses.

source: http://www.mythindex.com

ALMOND BLOSSOM / MANDORLO

oil on canvas 100 x 70 cm

€ 1.100,00

Almond Blossom Haiku

by Andrew Lansdown

I

     Bees

i

Such magnificence

even the bees are absorbed—

blossoming almond.

ii

The more blossom

it has, the more bees it hasn’t—

 almond tree.

iii

Flowering almond—

what apiarist could provide

enough beehives?

II

   Colours

i

Collectively

tending towards pink—the white

almond petals.

ii

An inference of pink

in the almond petals strewn

whitely on the lawn.

iii

Last almond petal—

difficult to determine

if it’s white or pink.

III

    Compost

i

I put off mowing

beneath the flowering almond

for another week.

ii

Intermingled with

the clippings from the catcher—

torn almond petals.

iii

So ethereal,

yet even they become compost,

the almond petals.

First published in Quadrant magazine.

Copyright © Andrew Lansdown

Read more of Andrew Lansdown’s work at andrewlansdown.com

LOTIS

oil on canvas (50 x 70 cm.)

PRIVATE COLLECTION

LOTIS was a Naiad Nymph of the springs of the River Sperkheios on Mount Othrys in Malis, northern Greece. She metamorphosed into a lotus flower in order to escape the pursuit of the god Priapos.

"You were holding, Greece, the feast of grape-crowned Bacchus [Dionysos], celebrated by custom each third winter. The gods who serve Lyaeus [Dionysos] also attended and whoever is not hostile to play, namely Panes and young Satyri and goddesses who haunt streams and lonely wilds [Naiades and Dryades]. Old Silenus came, too, on a sway-backed donkey, and the red-groined terror of timid birds [Priapos whose garden statue functioned as a scarecrow].

They discovered a grove suitable for party pleasures and sprawled on grass-lined couches. Liber [Dionysos] supplied wine, they had brought their own garlands, a brook gave water for frugal mixing. Naiades were there, some with hair flowing uncombed, others with locks artfully coiffured . . . Some generate tender fires inside the Satyri, others in you, whose brow is bound with pine [Pan]. They inflame you, too, Silenus; your lust can't be quenched, lechery will not allow you to be old. But red Priapus, the garden's glory and protection, fell victim above all to Lotis.

He desires her, he wants her, he sighs for her alone; he nods at her and pesters her with signs. Disdain defines the pretty, beauty is trailed by pride: she teases and scorns him with her looks. It was night. Wine induced slumber and prone bodies lay everywhere, conquered by sleep. Lotis rested furthest away, tired from partying, in the grass beneath some maple branches. Her lover rises and, holding his breath, tracks secretly and silently on tiptoe. When he had reached the snow-white Nympha's secluded bed, he took care his breathing was soundless. And now he was poised on the grass right next to her, and still she was filled with a mighty sleep. His joy soars; he draws the cover from her feet and starts the happy road to his desires.

Then look, the donkey, Silenus' mount, brays loudly, and emits untimely blasts from its throat. The terrified Nympha leaps up, fends Priapus off, and awakens the whole grove with her flight. And the god, whose obscene part was far too ready, was ridiculed by all in the moon's light. The author of the clamour was punished with death. He’s a victim dear to Hellespont’s god."  Ovid, Fasti 1. 391 ff (trans.Boyle) (Roman poetry C1st B.C. to C1st A.D.) :

"There is a lake [in Oikhalia] whose shelving sides had shaped a sloping shore, and myrtles crowned the ridge. There Dryope had come, not dreaming of fate's design, and, what must make you more indignant, bringing garlands for the Nymphae . . . Near the lakeside was a water-lotus flowered, its crimson blooms like Tyrian dye, fair hope of fruit to come. Dryope picked a posy of these flowers to please her boy. I [Iole] meant to do the same (for I was there), when I saw drops of blood drip from the blossoms of the boughs shiver in horror. For this shrub, you see (too late the peasants told us), was the Nymphe Lotis who fled Priapus's lechery and found changed features there but kept her name. Nothing of this my sister knew. She'd said prayers to the Nymphae and now in terror tried to turn away and leave, but found her feet rooted. She fought to free herself, but failed to move below her bosom. Gradually up from the soil right round her legs and loins bark climbed and clung; and, seeing it, she tried to tear her hair, but found leaves filled her hand, leaves covered her whole head [she was transformed into a tree]." Ovid, Metamorphoses 9. 334 ff (trans. Melville) (Roman epic C1st B.C. to C1st A.D.) :

source: http://www.theoi.com

POPPY / PAPAVERO

oil on canvas (60 x 80 cm.)

€ 800,00

MINTHE

oil on canvas (40 x 80 cm.)

€ 650,00

MINTHE (or Mintha) was a Naiad Nymph of Mount Minthe in Elis (southern Greece) who was loved by the god Haides. When she claimed to be superior to Persephone, the goddess transformed into a mint plant.

"Near Pylos, towards the east, is a mountain named after Minthe, who, according to myth, became the concubine of Haides, was trampled under foot by Kore (Core) [Persephone], and was transformed into garden-mint, the plant which some call hedyosmos. Furthermore, near the mountain is a precinct sacred to Haides."   Strabo, Geography 8. 3. 14 (trans. Jones) (Greek geographer C1st B.C. to C1st A.D.)

"Mint (Mintha), men say, was once a maid beneath the earth, a Nymphe of Kokytos (Cocytus), and she lay in the bed of Aidoneus [Hades]; but when he raped the maid Persephone from the Aitnaian hill [Mount Etna in Sicily], then she complained loudly with overweening words and raved foolishly for jealousy, and Demeter in anger trampled upon her with her feet and destroyed her. For she had said that she was nobler of form and more excellent in beauty than dark-eyed Persephone and she boasted that Aidoneus would return to her and banish the other from his halls: such infatuation leapt upon her tongue. And from the earth spray the weak herb that bears her name."   Oppian, Halieutica 3. 485 ff (trans. Mair) (Greek poet C3rd A.D.)

"Persephone of old was given grace to change a woman's [Mintha's] form to fragrant mint."   Ovid, Metamorphoses 10. 728 ff (trans. Melville) (Roman epic C1st B.C. to C1st A.D.)

source: http://www.theoi.com

ECHO

oil on canvas (60 x 80 cm.)

€ 800,00

EKHO (or Echo) was an Oreiad nymph of Mount Kithairon (Cithaeron) in Boiotia. The goddess Hera cursed her with the voice of the echo, to only repeat the last words of what was said before, as punishment for distracting her with chatter. She was loved by the god Pan, and herself became enamoured of the boy Narkissos (Narcissus). When the youth spurned her advances the faded away, leaving only her echoing voice behind. In ancient Greek vase painting Ekho was depicted as a winged nymph with her face shrouded in a veil.

"Cephisius [i.e. the boy Narkissos, Narcissus] now had reached his sixteenth year and seemed both man and boy; and many a youth and many a girl desired him, but hard pride ruled in that delicate frame, and never a youth and never a girl could touch his haughty heart. Once as he drove to nets the frightened deer a strange-voiced Nymphe observed him, who must speak if any other speak an cannot speak unless another speak, resounding Echo. Echo was still a body, not a voice, but talkative as now, and with the same power of speaking, only to repeat, as best she could, the last of many words, Saturnia [Hera] had made her so; for many a time when the great goddess might have caught the Nymphae lying with Jove [Zeus] upon the mountainside, Echo discreetly kept her talking till the Nymphae had fled away; and when at last the goddess saw the truth, ‘Your tongue’, she said, ‘with which you tricked me, now its power shall lose, your voice avail but fro the briefest use.’ The event confirmed the threat: when speaking ends, all she can do is double each last word, and echo back again the voice she's heard.

Now when she saw Narcissus wandering in the green byways, Echo's heart was fired; and stealthily she followed, and the more she followed him, the nearer flamed her love. As when a torch is lit and from the tip the leaping sulphur grasps the offered flame. She longed to come to him with winning words, to urge soft please, but nature now opposed; she might not speak the first but--wheat she might--waited for words her voice could say again. It chanced Narcissus, searching for his friends, called ‘Anyone here?’ and Echo answered ‘Here!’ Amazed he looked all round and, raising his voice called ‘Come this way!’ and Echo called ‘This way!’ He looked behind and, no one coming, shouted ‘Why run away?’ and heard his words again. He stopped, and cheated by the answering voice, called ‘Join me here!’ and she, never more glad to give her answer, answered ‘Join me here!’ And graced her words and ran out from the wood to throw her longing arms around his neck. He bolted, shouting ‘Keep your arms from me! Be off! I’ll die before I yield to you.’ And all she answered was ‘I yield to you’.

Shamed and rejected in the woods she hides and has her dwelling in the lonely caves; yet still her love endures and grows on grief, and weeping vigils waste her frame away; her body shrivels, all its moisture dries; only her voice and bones are left; at last only her voice, her bones are turned to stone, so in the woods she hides and hills around, for all to hear, alive, but just a sound.

Thus had Narcissus mocked her; others too, Nymphae of Hill and Water and many a man he mocked; till one scorned youth, with raised hands, prayed, ‘So may he love-- and never win his love!’ And Rhamnusia [Nemesis] approved the righteous prayer . . . [and caused Narkissos to fall in love with his own reflection and waste away in grief.]

No longer lasts the body Echo loved. But she, though angry still and unforgetting, grieved for the hapless boy, and when he moaned ‘Alas’, with answering sob she moaned ‘alas’, and when he beat his hands upon his breast, she gave again the same sad sound of woe. His latest words, gazing and gazing still, he sighed ‘alas! The boy I loved in vain!’ And these the place repeats, and then ‘farewell’, and Echo said ‘farewell’. On the green grass he drooped his weary head, and those bright eyes that loved their master’s beauty closed in death . . . His sister Naides wailed and sheared their locks in mourning for their brother; the Dryades too wailed and sad Echo wailed in answering woe. And then the brandished torches, bier and pyre were ready--but no body anywhere; and in its stead they found a flower--behold, white petals clustered round a cup of gold!"    Ovid, Metamorphoses 3. 350 ff (trans. Melville) (Roman epic C1st B.C. to C1st A.D.) :

source: http://www.theoi.com

AEGLE

oil on canvas (40 x 80 cm.)

€ 650,00

AIGLE (or Aegle) was the goddess of radiant good health. She was an attendant of her father, the medicine-god Asklepios. Her sisters included Panakeia (All-Cure), Iaso (Remedy) and Hygeia (Good-Health).

According to Virgil and Pausanias she is the most beautiful of the Naiads, daughter of Zeus and Neaera (Virg. Eclog. vi. 20), by whom Helios begot the Charites. (Paus. ix. 35. § 1.)

source: www.mythindex.com

NEREID / NEREIDE

oil on canvas (60 x 80 cm.)

€ 800,00

Nereis, or Nerine (Virg. Eclog. vii. 37), is a patronymic from Nereus, and applied to his daughters (Nereides, Nêreïdes, and in Homer Nêrêïdes) by Doris, who were regarded by the ancients as marine nymphs of the Mediterranean, in contra-distinction from the Naiades, or the nymphs of fresh water, and the Oceanides, or the nymphs of the great ocean (Eustath. ad Hom. p. 622). The number of the Nereides was fifty, but their names are not the same in all writers (Hom. Il. xviii. 39, &c.; Hes. Theog. 240, &c.; Pind. Isthm. vi. 8; Apollod. i. 2. § 7; Ov. Met. ii. 10, &c.; Virg. Aen. v. 825; Hygin. Fab. praef.) They are described as lovely divinities, and dwelling with their father at the bottom of the sea, and they were believed to be propitious to all sailors, and especially to the Argonauts (Hom. Il. xviii. 36, &c. 140; Apollod. i. 9. § 25; Apollon. Rhod. iv. 859, 930). They were worshipped in several parts of Greece, but more especially in sea-port towns. such as Cardamyle (Paus. iii. 2. § 5), and on the Isthmus of Corinth (ii. 1. § 7). The epithets given them by the poets refer partly to their beauty and partly to their place of abode. They were frequently represented in antiquity, in paintings, on gems, in relievoes and statues, and commonly as youthful, beautiful, and naked maidens, and often grouped together with Tritons and other marine monsters, in which they resemble the Bacchic routs. Sometimes, also, they appear on gems as half maidens and half fish, like mermaids, the belief in whom is quite analogous to the belief of the ancients in the existence of the Nereides.

source: www.mythindex.com

UNICORNS / UNICORNI

oil on canvas (120 x 80 cm.)

PRIVATE COLLECTION

“The account of the unicorn is often combined with that of the monocerus, with some sources saying that they are the same animal. Other sources treat the two as separate beasts, and describe them quite differently. Some manuscripts have accounts and illustrations of both.

The unicorn is described variously as resembling a small goat, an ass, or a horse. It has a single horn in the middle of its head; the horn is usually depicted as straight and long, and often with a spiral groove running up it. The unicorn is fierce, strong and swift, and no hunter can catch it. To tame the beast so it can be captured, a virgin girl is placed in its path. The unicorn, seeing the maiden, comes to her and puts its head in her lap and falls asleep. The hunters can then easily capture or kill it. Some accounts say the girl must bare her breast and allow the unicorn to suckle. If the unicorn is captured, it is taken to the king's palace.

The unicorn is the enemy of the elephant, which it attacks with its horn, piercing the elephant's belly. Some sources say that it is the sharp nail on the unicorn's foot that pierces the elephant.

A unicorn's horn is highly valued. It can be used to detect poison, and if dipped in a poisoned drink, the horn causes the poison to be rendered harmless. Powdered unicorn horn is used as an aphrodisiac."

"The unicorn signifies Christ, who was made incarnate in Mary's womb, was captured by the Jews, and was put to death. The unicorn's fierce wildness shows the inability of hell to hold Christ. The single horn represents the unity of God and Christ. The small size of the unicorn is a symbol of Christ's humility in becoming human.”

source: http://bestiary.ca

PELICAN / PELLICANO

oil on canvas (40 x 50 cm.)

CHIESA MATRICE TUTTI I SANTI
BIANCO (RC) ITALY

“PELICAN. This bears a great love to its young; and if it finds them slain in the nest by a serpent it pierces itself to the heart in their presence, and by bathing them with a shower of blood it restores them to life.”

“PELLICANO. Questo porta grande amore a' sua nati, e trovando quelli nel nido morti dal serpente, si punge a riscontro al core, e col suo piovente sangue bagnandoli li torna in vita.”

Leonardo da Vinci

LUMERPA

oil on canvas (40 x 50 cm.)

€ 500,00

"LUMERPA. FAME. This is born in Asia Magna and shines so brightly that it absorbs its shadows. And in dying it does not lose this light, and the feathers never fall out. And the feather which is detached ceases to shine."

"LUMERPA: FAMA. Questa nasce nell'Asia maggiore, e splende sì forte che toglie le sue ombre, e morendo non perde esso lume, e mai li cade più le penne, e la penna che si spicca più non luce."

Leonardo da Vinci

CRANES / GRU

oil on canvas (60 x 80 cm.)

€ 800,00

“FIDELITY OR LOYALTY. The cranes are so faithful and loyal to their king that at night when he is asleep some pace up and down the meadow to keep guard over him from a distance; others stand near at hand, and each holds a stone in his foot, so that if sleep should overcome them the stone would fall and make such a noise that they would be wakened up. There are others who sleep together around the king, and they do this every night taking it in turn so that their king may not come to find them wanting.”

FEDELTÀ OVVER LIALTÀ. Le gru son tanto fedeli e leali al loro re che la notte, quando lui dorme, 

alcune vanno dintorno al prato per guardare da lunga, altre ne stanno da presso, e tengano un sasso 

ciascuna in piè, acciò che se 'l sonno le vincessi, essa pietra caderebbe e farebbe tal romore che si 

ridesterebbono; e altre vi sono che 'nsieme intorno al re dormano, e ciò fanno ogni notte, scambiandosi acciò che il loro re non vegni a mancare."

Leonardo da Vinci, Bestiario

PHOENIX / FENICE

oil on canvas (40 x 50 cm.)

€ 500,00

“CONSTANCY. For constancy the phoenix serves as a type; for understanding by nature its renewal it is steadfast to endure the burning flames which consume it, and then it is reborn anew.”

“CONSTANTIA. Alla costanzia s'assimiglia la finice; la quale, intendendo per natura la sua renovazione, è costante a sostene' le cocenti fiamme, le quali la consumano, e poi di novo rinasce.”

Leonardo da Vinci

ERMINE / ERMELLINO

oil on canvas (40 x 50 cm.)

€ 500,00

“MODERATION. The ermine because of its moderation eats only once a day, and it allows itself to be captured by the hunters rather than take refuge in a muddy lair, in order not to stain its purity.”

“MODERANZA. L'ermellino, per la sua moderanzia, non mangia se n[on] una sola volta il dì, e prima si lascia pigliare a' cacciatori che volere fuggire nella infangata tana. Per non maculare la sua gentilezza."

"MODERANZA RAFFRENA TUTTI I VIZI. L'ermellino prima vol morire che 'mbrattarsi.”

Leonardo da Vinci

ANMPHESIBENA / ANFISBENA

oil on canvas (40 x 50 cm.)

€ 500,00

"AMPHISBOENA. This has two heads, one in its usual place the other at its tail, as though it was not sufficient for it to throw its poison from one place only."

"ANPHESIBENE. Questa ha due teste, l'una nel suo loco, l'altra nella coda, come se non bastassi che da uno solo loco gittassi il veneno."

Leonardo da Vinci

STILO

oil on canvas (40 x 50 cm.)

€ 500,00

Stilo (Greek: Stylos, column) is a town and comune in the province of Reggio Calabria, in the Calabria region of southern Italy. It is located 151 km from Reggio Calabria. The economy of the commune is mainly based on agriculture, with production of cereals, oil, wine and cheese. There are mines of iron and lead. At 10 km from the city is the promontory of Cape Stilo, where in 1940 the Battle of Punta Stilo was fought by the Italian and British Navies.

source: wikipedia