Sunday, September 12, 2010

"Guardian of the Bayou Princess"

Several weeks ago, I posted a "work in progress" photo of this piece. Since then, I have been so over the top busy, I have had no time to actually set at my desk and work. Last night, I finally finished this piece! I found a few hours of uninterrupted time at my desk, and I took advantage of that time ~



This new piece is entitled: "Guardian of the Bayou Princess", and it is built around a vintage photo of an African American girl from Louisiana. I acquired this photo a couple of years ago and have been fascinated with it since I first laid eyes on it. The photo was snapped in the 1920s in a small town in Louisiana, not too far from New Orleans. The writing on back of the photo led me to believe that the girl was somehow "special" in her local region. That's all I'll say about that....

With this haunting yet beautiful young woman, and the original writing on the back of the photo, I was able to create a story to go along with this piece ~ part fiction, part reality...

"Ayira is heartsick today, the day of her 18th birthday. This special time is to be celebrated, but Ayira can think only of her sister ~ her twin sister, born exactly 2 hours and 32 seconds after herself. You see, Ayira and Adongo were born deep in the Bayou...secret babies. Each to be a Princess at 18 years of age. They were both expected to carry on a family tradition....but 2 years ago, there was a terrible accident. So horrible and unexpected that it's never talked about....and now, Ayira is alone and heart-broken, with no desire to live, let alone to be a Princess. But...on this day, the day of Ayira's 18th birthday...everything will change ~

The ending of the story belongs to you...."

If you have any questions about this piece, please feel free to email me. If you are interested in purchasing this original piece, you can find it in Gerushia's Etsy Shop.

I don't have an exact date, but "Guardian of the Bayou Princess" will be offered in print form as well.

Until Next Time:
Kim
Gerushia's New World

1 comment:

Marie Rayner said...

Ohh, I loe this and the background you have given us on this photo. Love the story you have created to go along with it as well!! xxoo