Showing posts with label snow maiden. Show all posts
Showing posts with label snow maiden. Show all posts

Monday, July 6, 2015

Forest Rogers Wins Gold Spectrum Award!

Venetian Harpy  by Forest Rogers

The 22nd Spectrum Awards (for science fiction and fantasy art in all mediums) were recently held and one of my favorite fairy tale illustrators and sculptors, Forest Rogers, won a gold award in the Dimensional category, for her stunning and amazing Venetian Harpy (see above).

Congratulations Forest!!

Note: I should also mention that Scott Gustafson, who has illustrated many a fairy tale picture book, received the Grand Master Award!

Though Forest Rogers doesn't exclusively work on fairy tale subjects she has made, and continues to create, many memorable fairy tale-based pieces, and from little bits I pick up around social media, she's looking at continuing/completing the Vasilissa illustrations she began many years ago (before she got into sculpting) and, off and on, has been researching The Crane Wife, as she'd apparently like to create a sculpture based on the Japanese fairy tale as well. (!!)

Below are some of her other fairy tale works to date, and perhaps you can see why I love her work so.
Baba Yaga
Baba Yaga's Hut
Vasilissa with her mother's doll
Baba Yaga (still being dressed) & Vasilissa
Baba Yaga, Vasilissa and the Chicken-Legged Hut together
Snow Maiden as she melts
Banshee
Yuki Ona - snow spirit
East of the Sun (inspired by Kay Neilsen's illustration)
East of the Sun (2nd sculpt)
Swan child in progress
Hans Andersen's Little Mermaid
Silvershod (aka Silver Hoof) & his friend Cat (Russian tale)
Red Riding Hood in progress
Red Riding Hood & Wolf
(Something about this evokes Perrault and Dore and other early illustrated versions of LRRH to me.)
Vasiliss'a Mother gives her a doll before she passes away
Vaslissa enters Baba Yaga's forest
Baba Yaga tasks Vasilissa with impossible tasks
Vaslissa talks to her doll (and the doll talks back)
Baba Yaga in a rage
One of the horsemen Vasilissa sees on her journey
 You can see much more of Forest Roger's work on her website HERE and follow her on Facebook HERE and Twitter HERE. She also has a great set of boards on Pinterest HERE.

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Ballet: Kremlin Ballet's "The Snow Maiden" TONIGHT in Moscow

Tonight - Wednesday, April 8th - The Kremlin Ballet will be in Moscow performing The Snow Maiden, dedicated to the 175th anniversary of the birth of Tchaikovsky! (His actual birthdate was May 7th, 1840).

Special events honoring the composer will be held all over Russia throughout the year, and this is one of those events.

From the Kremlin Palace (auto-translated from Russian):
Snow Maiden image is unique to Russian culture and, in particular, for the choreographic art.  
Music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in Alexander Ostrovsky's play "The Snow Maiden" was a true masterpiece, one of the most inspired works, filled with light, rich colors, violent flowering fabulous colorful images.  
" The Snow Maiden "was a creative way to PI Tchaikovsky bridge from the first compositional experiments and brilliant insights in "Swan Lake", "Eugene Onegin". As himself admitted PI Tchaikovsky, he liked the play "Snow Maiden", he effortlessly composed all the music for three weeks.  
At the stage of the State Kremlin Palace springtime tale directed by Andrei Petrov gained strength ancient pagan myth. The grand scene, dazzling costumes, powerful scenery, original choreography, the perfection of classical dance and acting skills of talented troupe create an unforgettable, fantastic impression in adults, and the young spectator.
You can see more lovely photos HERE.

According to what I can understand, the Kremlin Ballet will be taking The Snow Maiden and Swan Lake to China at some point during the year (2015) as well. I couldn't find more specific details, other than the destination is specifically Tianjin.

If you'd like to go TONIGHT:
The Snow Maiden (Snegurochka): Kremlin Ballet production of Tchaikovsky's ballet based on Alexander Ostrovsky's tale of love. Kremlin Palace. Moscow Kremlin, the Troitsky Gate entrance. Metro Alexandrovsky Sad. Ticket office 1 Ulitsa Vozdvizhenka. Metro Borovitskaya. 495-628-5232, kremlinpalace.org. At 7 p.m.

Friday, March 20, 2015

The Snow Maiden: A Spring Fairy Tale ("Snegurochka")

All images from Snegurochka - Russian animated film 1952 by Soyuzmultfilm
Did you know the opera version (by Rimsky-Korsakov) of this Russian fairy tale's full title is: The Snow Maiden: A Spring Fairy Tale? While the character of Snegurochka is a Winter character, the fairy tale she is most commonly used in (and variants) is actually a Spring tale.

The Snow Girl is, according to Russian folk tale sites, a slightly different tale with a different emphasis, even though many of the elements appear the same.

Here's a little summary of the story of this not-so-straight forward character from Russian folklore, as told by Alexandr Ostrovsky (from RussianFolkArt.com):
It has been winter for fifteen years because the Sun God is angry that Frost and Spring have had a daughter together: Snegurochka. Now on the verge of adulthood, she decides to escape the cold and lonely forest and join the world of the mortals. She is attracted by Lel’s seductive songs but is unable to express her feelings for him. Snegurochka’s friend Kupava is engaged to Mizgir, but when he sees Snegurochka he falls in love with her instead and breaks off the original engagement, leaving Kupava upset and angry at her betrayal.
She seeks solace in the arms of Lel. Meanwhile Snegurochka begs her mother to grant her the capacity for human love and warmth. At a mass spring wedding, Snegurochka professes her love for Mizgir as a ray of sun strikes her and she melts away. The Sun God is appeased by her death and all celebrate the coming of spring. 
Spring, love and... death. 

Is it talking about how love - or lust - at first sight, isn't usually a lasting state, or that it isn't nourishing for the soul? Or that love, after changing you - sometimes beyond recognition, heals?

Seen in this light, it's not too distant a story from Persephone, is it? I haven't seen Snegurochka and Persephone linked except in visuals like the one at the right, though (which shows the Snow Maiden crowned and veiled with her mother's - Spring's - flowers).

The concepts - and character - have been explored in plays, movies, ballets and, of course, the opera, which alone suggest that something fundamental about the human condition and journey resonates with people in this seasonal tale.

Happy First Day of Spring to all those in the Northern Hemisphere (and Happy First Day of Autumn to our fairy tale folk living below the equator!)


Tuesday, February 9, 2010

The Girl With Glass Feet - Review

Strange things are happening on the remote archipelago of St Hauda's Land. Unusual winged creatures flit around icy bogland; albino animals hide in the snow-glazed woods; jellyfish glow in the ocean's depths… and Ida Maclaird is turning into glass.

The Girl With Glass Feet

The premise:

We're introduced to St. Hauda's Land in the coldest season and at first glance it seems this is a place where Winter rules all. The land is icy and snowbound, the guarded people forced together by the black sea surrounding it and the mysteries contained within. The boglands are harsh and lend themselves to ghost-sightings, though whether they're real or imaginary, most are reluctant to find out.

"Would you believe there are glass bodies here, hidden in the bog water?" Henry Fuwa says to mainlander Ida Mclaird, in a brief and very odd exchange.

It's something she dismisses as one stranger's delirious ramblings until her own feet begin to turn to glass. She returns to St. Hauda's determined to find Henry and some answers. But there's much more to the monochrome land, and it's people, than first meets the eye. Even with the reluctant help of a young local photographer named Midas, Ida finds more questions than answers, and, as the glass creeps up her ankles, it's apparent time is running out.
Illustration by Ali Shaw of St. Hauda's Land

Review:
Note: As this is a fairy tale themed blog I'll be focusing on the folk/fairy tale and mythic aspects of the novel.

Quite simply, I loved this book, not the least because it's all about transformation. It was an unexpected pleasure of magical realism interwoven with a touching and resonant love story*. The fantastical elements were so deftly handled it felt completely believable. While I was reading, the weather was cold and snow-filled and it wasn't a stretch to feel you could look out the window and catch a glimpse of the elusive creature who "turns everything she looks at pure white". Other creatures and phenomena are revealed so naturally you're drawn in to accept their reality without question, which in turn brings you to appreciate this harsh yet wondrous land. This is a story which just happens to have fantastic aspects. You don't need to like fantasy or fairy tales to enjoy this book.
A moth-winged bull by Ali Shaw

The fairy tale of this novel is very 'old world' in that it's not focused on the magic, nor on the happily-ever-after but instead on the people and the individual journeys they take - some more successful than others. A parallel could be made with Cinderella, considering the 'permanent' glass slipper and the ticking clock but I feel this fairy tale deserves it's own consideration apart from that story type. If anything, "The Girl With Glass Feet" seems to have a closer relation to Snow Maiden stories or Orpheus & Eurydice. Despite those parallels and the bleakness of the land and circumstances (for more than just Ida and Midas) there's a very real sense of hope and a blooming of life, something mirrored by the lovely little moth-winged cattle that share one of the most symbolic and touching scenes in the book.
It's apparent Mr. Shaw reads and loves the old fairy tales (something that was confirmed by visiting his blog, in which he discusses some of his favorites and shares the lovely sketches he's been inspired to draw, some of which are shown in this post). "The Girl With Glass Feet" draws on European fairy tales (as well as possibly some Inuit legends) and is infused with fantastic renderings that have as much believability as they had in the pre-mechanized past when everyday tasks and rituals allowed for the reality of such creatures and happenings.
Click Ali Shaw's sketch to go to his blog

The writing itself is lovely; an impressive debut with a wonderfully unique way of using words that's a pleasure to read. Told mainly from the point of view of Midas and Ida, the point of view changes within chapters (and sometimes paragraphs) were unexpected but I felt it worked for the most part, rarely pulling me out of the story (some were, in fact, humorous and/or wonderfully refreshing). I usually find such 'head-hopping' very distracting but the fluidity of storytelling remained in general. There are many relational intricacies between the many characters, including Midas' parents (one deceased and one not), Ida's parents and more. Overall they're well handled and interwoven. If anything bothered me it was possibly a little too much backstory on some of the more minor characters, making me impatient to get back to the ticking clock on Midas and Ida. This is forgivable though as all the characters felt very real. Even the descriptions of the locations had such variety and life, the land itself seemed alive and a character in its own right, with its own story.
There are many other reviews cropping up at present so I won't go into too much more detail except to say the book is full of deliberate contrasts which play off of each other beautifully (such as the lively Ida slowly turning to glass while Midas, who has stayed safely behind the glass lens of his camera, learns to embrace life). I love the symbolism used throughout, which doesn't feel at all heavy-handed (I'll let you to discover your own connections). The heart of the land and the hearts of the people living in it are juxtaposed to great effect while always there's the sense of water all around, moving everything and everyone along in the story. Even the prose has a very fluid feel to it with the words flowing beautifully and unpredictably, taking you to places you wouldn't expect.
Illustration by Ali Shaw for his blog post on The Nixie in the Millpond

I liked that reasons weren't given for every phenomena and that some things were left unexplained. There were enough depths and textures given that you could create your own theories if you thought about it but it also felt very fairy tale-like to have things just 'be' without dissection. I found the ending touching, completely satisfying and thought it finished with just the right amount of denouement.

If this is the only book Mr. Shaw writes**, it's a great one to have written. It's already gathering honorable mentions and being placed on the long and short lists for awards. I wouldn't be surprised if it becomes a movie one day, it has that sort of feel to it, reminding me of both Gabriel Garcia Marquez's books and "Snow Falling On Cedars".
Author Ali Shaw

Summary:
"The Girl With Glass Feet" is a magical, transformative story, full of an 'old world' fairy tale sense, contrasting wonder with bleakness, both in landscape and in circumstance. This book was such a joy to read - a true winter fairy tale that doesn't shy away from the pain and sadness of an imperfect world yet still shines with the hope of a coming sun.

Rating:
5 stars - excellent. Highly recommended.

Other reviews of "The Girl With Glass Feet" by fairy tale sites:
Folk and Fairy
Supernatural Fairy Tales
Cabinet Des Feés

* This isn't a romance per say but it is very much in keeping with how romantic love is portrayed in fairy tales - that is, truly, both in pain and in joy. There is more than one love story in this book and the others neatly serve to underscore the truth of the main, developing, love story between Ida and Midas.
** Ali Shaw is currently at work on his second novel.