Thursday, February 10, 2011

Apollo and Daphne

In mythology, Cupid shoots Apollo with a gold arrow that makes him fall in love with Daphne; in turn, she is shot with one of lead. Hatred for him grows in her heart, but Apollo pursues the beauty regardless. When she feels him gaining on her in a chase, Daphne cries for her father to change her form, thinking her beauty is what got her into this situation.

"Scarcely had she spoken, when a stiffness seized all her limbs;
her bosom began to be enclosed in a tender bark; her hair became
leaves; her arms became branches; her feet stuck fast in the
ground, as roots; her face became a tree-top, retaining nothing
of its former self but its beauty."
Quote Source
 


image sources: left, right

No idea why I find the idea of this girl changing into a tree so lustrous. But I do. There is a whimsical quality to the image that I would really like to recreate. Daphne and Apollo, I will resurrect you.
Posted by A Timely Mystique at 9:45 PM

2 comments:

  1. DarkshinesFebruary 20, 2011 at 12:50 AM

    I'm so fascinated by that statue and this story as well. It's one of my favorites along with Icarus.

    I think our souls were split from the same source.

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  2. A Timely MystiqueFebruary 20, 2011 at 12:58 AM

    "I think our souls were split from the same source."

    Aw. I think so too :)

    I just googled Icarus and you're right, it is beautiful:

    "He made two pairs of wings by adhering feathers to a wooden frame with wax. Giving one pair to his son, he cautioned him that flying too near the sun would cause the wax to melt. But Icarus became ecstatic with the ability to fly and forgot his father's warning. The feathers came loose and Icarus plunged to his death in the sea."

    http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/The_Lament_For_Icarus.jpg/491px-The_Lament_For_Icarus.jpg

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