CANADIAN DOLL ARTIST ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE MAY 2000
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A priestess of Freyja, the great goddess, reads the bones for her tribe. She is a tribal elder in a culture that is matrilineal and honours female deities. Her full figure illuminates the tribes success in gathering and hunting, her fringed and beaded skirt proclaims her status as a mother.. She wears a necklace containing amber - the Goddess tears. The feather capelet symbolizes her shamanic ability to fly and shape change. She has painted herself with Her symbols of fertility and abundance.
Until 4000 BC Europe was a peacefull place, women were respected and had full equal rights with men, inhertance passed thru the female line, women were important priestesses, owned property and could marry or divorce at will. The came the invaders from the eastern steppes, horseman with metal weapons and chariots. Three times (according to the myths ) they tried to overrun europe and were beaten back. Eventually they reconcilled and the women kept some of their rights but further east the nomads succeeded and distroyed the civilizations for pre-hellenic greece, the etrustcans, Crete and Egypt. With the help of the Chistian Church they eventually triumped in Europe too. Untill the 11th century in Wales women could be judges, own land and run businesses. 100,000 years of peace and equality brought us agriculture, architecture,music,writing, atromony and mathematics. After 6000 years of war and oppresion we have ecological disaster, famine and wars. Its time to reclaim our heritage.
Also by the wonderfull large women in my practice especially Marta Zinkevitch who teachs Yoga for Round Bodies and who was the model for this doll.
After seeing so many skiny dolls I wanted to make a doll that showed full bodied women in a position of authority and dignity. As we age our bodies become rounder even those of us who were Barbie girls.
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