“Astral Light”, 12x24, oil on wood panel The imagery for this piece burst out o

“Astral Light”, 12x24, oil on wood panel

The imagery for this piece burst out of a sudden need to explore Egyptian imagery, which I find to be incredibly magical and alluring. Not surprisingly to those of you who know me, scarab imagery resonates deeply.
The god Khepri was connected with the scarab beetle because they roll balls of dung across the sand dunes, an act that the Egyptians saw as a symbol of the forces that move the sun across the sky. Khepri was thus a solar deity. Young dung beetles, having been laid as eggs within the dung ball, emerge from it fully formed. Therefore, Khepri also represented creation and rebirth, and he was specifically connected with the rising sun and the mythical creation of the world.