Radka Bodzewicz 1991
Pachamama, 2023
Mixed media on Linen
120 x 80 cm
47 1/4 x 31 1/2 in
47 1/4 x 31 1/2 in
RBO 229
Copyright The Artist
The artwork entitled Pachamama is a tribute to the goddess of fertility, the original Inca deity who presides over sowing and harvesting. In Quechua, this title also means “Mother of...
The artwork entitled Pachamama is a tribute to the goddess of fertility, the original Inca deity who presides over sowing and harvesting. In Quechua, this title also means “Mother of the Earth.’ The central figure of the Great Mother represents a cycle inspired by Goya’s painting of Saturn. She symbolizes the act of devouring and giving birth, reminiscent of Kronos’ time. Another source of inspiration for me was the tanka of the Last Judgement painted in Bologna in the 18th–19th century. Following the iconography of the Book of the Dead, I have portrayed the mother in the form of the devil (since a child often sees their mother as their god, it is fitting to depict her as the devil). The theme of the Great Mother keeps captivating me, and I have been exploring its representation in various cultures, from the Inca tradition to the European Christian tradition, which has replaced it with the Virgin Mary, causing its original meaning to fade. On the subject of the Great Mother, I highly recommend Erich Neumann’s book The Great Mother.