Satanica Naturalis

"Satanica Naturalis"

11 x 14 inches

acrylic on birch panel

2012

*****SOLD*****

Here's my finished painting, "Satanica Naturalis".  I'm very happy with the way this came out.  

I had an idea in my mind that I wanted to create a painting about Satanism that avoided the normal cliches, and didn't have any black in it at all.  I've always been of the mind that the color white can seem much more evil and creepy than black, and I wanted to take that even into the albino ravens.  I wanted the vibe to be something along the lines of, "so evil and black it's white".  Like Spinal Tap, "None More Black".  If that makes any sense at all.

The imagery depicts a white goat skull with inverted pentagram carved into the forehead, surrounded by an ornate metallic colored ring.  The two albino ravens represent the two types of Satanism; Theistic Satanism (left) and Atheistic Satanism (right). You can tell by their height which one I lean more towards (atheistic), but I would never completely subscribe to any religion.  

I think that all organized religion is inherently wrong, but I wanted this piece to make people think twice about Satanism; if they know nothing about it, it is worth investigating and aspects of it can actually be quite beautiful.  It's never wise to stay in a state of blind ignorance; it's better to find out the facts and then judge for yourself, not just believe what others tell you.

The ravens are flanked by narcissus, a flower that in Floriography (Victorian flower language) stood for egotism, self-love, and self-esteem.  This idea of putting yourself first is an important aspect of Satanism.  The birds are also holding onto several branches of pussy willows, which form the shape of an inverted pentagram. In Floriography pussy willows hold a similar significance, that of freedom. 

Here's the progress shots...