Lot 23: GERALD LAZARE (1927-) AND LEWIS PARKER (1926-2011)

GERALD LAZARE (1927-) AND LEWIS PARKER (1926-2011)
AFTERLIFE MYTHS (RELIGIOUS MYTHS 2); MIXED MEDIA; SIGNED BY BOTH ARTISTH LOWER RIGHT
20" x 22" - 50 x 55 cm.

Note: A label on the reverse of this artwork explains, "Some of the Huron myths reflect remarkably the myths of ancient Greece, even in details.
This is the legend of the Seven Sisters (Pliades), one of whom was loved by a Huron warrior who went to the stars to be with her.
-An eclipse is caused by the Turtle blotting out the sun, his is felled by arrows to restore the light.
-The heaven of dead children are in the fields around the village, where they are heard chasing the birds.
-To ensure a good fishing season, the Ceremony of the Seine weds to the river two young virgins, who will keep the river happy and provident. To ensure their status, the oki's selection of brides was quite young.
-To placate the furies, tobacco was thrown to the tormented waters and placed in landmark rocks.
-A boy, after fasting, sculpts into a tree a form seen in a dream. This form will remain with him as an amulet throughout his life.
-Souls of the dead are seen traveling to the Land of the Dead, where the Sun and the Moon live. On the way a dwarf ghost plucks their brains and puts them in a bag, to be kept in pumpkins. They cross a river and a huge dog frightens some of them into the rapids, lessening their chances of reaching their heaven.
-The legend of the Brother and Sister tells of how a young man travels to the Land of the Dead to find a beloved sister. He returns with instructions from a magician to carry her soul in one pumpkin, her brain in another and to have her body exhumed from the village grave over his back. He must carry them the length of the longhouse at a special feast where all present should not watch him. But one guest looks up just as her body starts to revive and she is lost to her brother forever.
The center illustration depicts the Legend of the Bark-Wrapped Bow. After a series of adventures in their search for the unbendable bow, one youth, resisting the temptations of a witch and heeding the advise of a wise man, succeeds in bending the bow."

To participate in this online auction please visit: http://onlineauctions.waddingtons.ca