Edge of Midnight, Greeting Card Set of Three

Description

This is a set of three greeting cards depicting my collage, "The Edge of Midnight" from my Elementals Collection. I wish I could cut down more on the cost for this set, but I can do so in shipping (please check that out!) The reason I can't is that each card has a hand-sewn spine--a lot of thought, time, energy and attention went into each card. The watery element of this piece makes it an ideal birthday card for all those watery Zodiac signs out there, such as the Cancer, which is where we are now in the cycle. Oh, and not to forget, the cardstock is a new recycled glossy type, beautiful and good for the earth too!!! Because of the hand-sewn design and specially scored spine, these cards sit very elegantly for display all on their own!

The card and envelope measure at 6 x 6 inches. The inside of each card has been left blank for your own personal message, mark and touch. The envelope in which the card fits is a transparent one with a round sticker centered on the back; the sticker has a blue lotus on it with hand-applied silver-blue glitter on it. As do all of AnangkaArt's greeting cards, these too have elaborate write-ups on the back not only explaining the artistic process in which the original art was created, but also the meaning behind the work itself. Done in a Papyrus font, this is how it reads:

“Edge of Midnight”—a collage by Sarah Elizabeth Taz Schantz from her collection, Elementals. Water, a butterfly, pearls and lotus blossoms describe this dreamscape, and here is why they’ve been placed within this liquid realm of magick:
The word and name, Psyche, according to The Woman’s Dictionary of Symbols and Sacred Objects, by Barbara G. Walker, was Greek for both “soul” and “butterfly” because of a former belief that human souls became these exquisite insects while seeking reincarnation. The Celts had a parallel belief in which “butterfly souls” flew about until swallowed by women who thus became pregnant. Here, an origami butterfly flutters upward from the waters as if reborn from the tomb.

The pearl, as J.E. Cirlot explains in A Dictionary of Symbols not only represents the human soul, but to Islam is a symbol of heaven, and to the Chinese is one of the “common emblems” of tradition, indicating a “genius in obscurity.” Psychoanalysts, because the pearl is found within the oyster, see it as the “mystic Centre,” otherwise known as the soul.

The lotus, aside from the rose, is universally the most sacred of flowers and is cross-culturally associated with goddesses (Hathor, Laksmi, Padma, Lilith and Kali) because by “bearing bud, bloom, and seed pod [all] together, a lotus is Virgin-Mother-Crone” (Walker); quite often, the lotus mythically is not only where the sun/ son goes to die, but where it/ he or humanity is born or reborn, both womb and tomb. Interestingly, the lotus is associated with the four classical elements (earth, water, air, fire). Water supports the stalk while its roots creep into the earth and its petals perfume the air, finally drawing fertility from the fire of the overhead sun. Water, a symbol of the unconscious, is transformative as it shape-shifts from fluid to ice to mist. Not only is it adaptive, it constitutes about 2/3 of the human body. And just as we were born from the amniotic waters of our mothers, the common myth holds that humanity was created from an infinite and primordial pool.

Water is our form, our thirst, our personality and journey. The pearl is our seed and individuality. The lotus is the divine yoni (vagina) from which we came and the eternal grave to which we go. And the butterfly, as it pollinates the world and undergoes metamorphosis, is our collective soul.

This piece was created on canvas (10 x 10) using rice paper, magazine clippings, pen & ink, embroidery thread, lace and glue. Sarah Elizabeth Taz Schantz lives in Boulder, CO where she creates art, writes and mothers. For more printed magick (greeting cards, fine art prints, magnets, etc.) check out her webshop, AnangkaArts.Etsy.com. Copyright, 2007. Single prints, 10 x 10 inches with ¼ inch border are priced at: $25.00 each.

It may be hard to believe that all of that fits onto the back of a 6 x 6 card, but it does, and it is easy enough to read as well! Remember, I am but a one woman shop so please allow for up to one week for me to process and ship your order (upon receipt of payment). Thanks for looking and for buying handmade! We simply can't afford not to in this day and age!!!

Added on Nov 04, 2009