Fast-clouded full moon

Cecelia Chapman
May 2021

What the Soul Wants: violent altars. Pink full moon cairn with rocks from Sandy Neck Beach mark the grave of the goose moon owl.

The Scottish Gaelic word, cairn, means a man-made mound of stones. Cairns have been made since prehistoric times They can be landmarks, burial monuments, used to locate a buried cache, trail markers, altars, and related to astronomy. Hermes is associated with cairns. He was buried under pebbles thrown by gods to vote for his skillful argument in killing Hera’s favorite servant, Argus. Greeks claim it was the first cairn. But all cultures have cairns. I chose to call cairns Violent Altars because they are often sacrificial sites, they frighten animals, mark territory, keep game away and disrupt the bionomics of an environment. I made this cairn on the April pink full moon 2021 in the woods near my house in the early night. The very moment I laid the rocks down to photograph them under the fast-clouded full moon, torrents of rain fell on me. I had to run home leaving the cairn. The next day I returned to photograph it.

Asemic Rock, Barnstable County Conservation Area.

I have heard about this rock since I have been living here. It scares people. They always tell me what they think it means: witchcraft, magic, crazy people and demented gibberish. I did not know what they were talking about, I finally found it. I call it the Asemic Rock. Because making meaning of an extraordinary object is what humans do when they practice culture.

Oracle Books: commercial bag paper, asemic symbols, personal rubber stamps. ink, gouache. Rocks from Gentle Inlet drawings, Sandy Neck Beach. Because wanting to predict the future is one of mans’ oldest cultural traits.

Goose Moon Owl

I found a dead owl on the new moon, at a crucial moment. I interpreted it to mean the end of things and a new beginning. This haiku video, “Goose moon owl steals night, shadow medicine spirit, crocus in dead tree,” depicts the cycle of life and death.

Cecelia Chapman is known for her short experimental video fables; she also works in minimalist watercolor and asemic drawing.

“In my practice I like to research environment and culture, perception and consciousness. I explore the connection between imagination and knowledge, and enjoy inventing new ways of presenting an experience.” Cecelia Chapman’s work has been exhibited locally and abroad, and published in many e-magazines online.

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