Bowl Ceremony

Date: 21 May 2005
Venue: Mooi River, 25kms east of Bronkhorstspruit, Gauteng
Time: Sunrise, Approximately 7AM
Media: 2 Cement bowls, Fire Earth, Wind and Water

Two cement bowls were constructed and taken to the Mooi River at sunrise. The location in the river was chosen because of the conjunction of earth, water and sky.

The cement bowls were carefully placed and one was filled with river water and the other with wood. The wood was lit, bringing the fourth element of fire into the ceremony. As the fire burned, the time was used for contemplation.

Once the bowl reached the necessary temperature, the fire was doused with the water from the first bowl. The resulting thermal shock shattered the bowl and ended the union of the elements, which precipitated the destruction.

Some of the bowl shards, and a bit of ash, were scattered into the river and to the winds as a final act of gratitude for the elements assistance in the ceremony.

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Element artwork

The proposed work will consist of four female figures, each embodying the ancient powers of the four elements (Earth, Wind, Fire and Water).

To me, the four elements embody the ancestral knowledge of past lifetimes, present challenges and future possibilities.

As an artist, I am telling the visual story of these women, these elements. They are the representation of us as seekers, as spiritual beings, here on this plane of existence for such a short time in our quest for enlightenment.

Posted 30 June 2005, www.face.org.za, author: Susanna Swart.