SYZYGY series

The belief of some primitive cultures was that the sun descends into the earth at the end of each day. After all, this phenomenon can be observed with the naked eye–the sun drops vertically into a mountain, or into the ocean. It was imagined that the sun, for some hours, dwelt in darkness, illuminating the darkness and dark matter with its brilliance. This notion exists for me as a provocative and poetic image and as a powerful metaphor for awakening, or consciousness–light in darkness. It is, as well, a description of the very composition of matter: Within the apparent opacity of matter dwell myriad forms of light–electrons and other dazzling particles moving about ceaselessly, dancing into existence our complex and paradoxical universe. The world of inert matter is, in fact, alive and vital, teeming and intelligent.

This series of paintings is a meditation on the sun’s daily descent into darkness, on the image of an underground sun, of light in matter, and of the metaphor of dark matter illuminated, alive, even sacred.

Our world, which we seem to decimate and sacrifice so easily these days comes alive as a gleaming, luminescent entity. My prayer is for this awareness, this enlightenment, to seep into and to infuse our own inert, soulless darkness.

Fran Bull 2002