Plant Myths
2020 - present
These small 5″ × 7″ paper-cut works represent myths and legends about plants from around the world, illustrated by the artist over the course of three years. Each color corresponds to one of nine regions of the globe, although cultural boundaries have never been absolute.
The complete collection comprises nearly three hundred stories and images. This website presents only a sampling of the work. Ultimately, the goal is to publish a series of nine small books, each devoted to myths connected with a particular region or culture, including the stories which inspired the images.
Hina in the Moon Under the Banyan Tree i - Polynesian and Oceanic Mythology
The Tree to the Leaping Place - Oceanic and Aboriginal Mythology
The Vine of Tagaloa - Polynesian Creation Myth
Nareau and the Ancestral Tree - Samoan Creation Myth - Polynesia
How Russians Came From Reeds - Mongolian Legend
The Butterfly Soul of a Man in the Linden Tree - Mari Folklore ( Russian Federation)
Rod in the Tree of Life - Eastern and Southern Slav Mythology
The Sirtya Girl in the Grass - Nenets Siberian Mythology
Great Wind and the Courage of Prairie Rose -Lakota Legend (North Americas)
The Origin of Tobacco - Crow Legend (North Americas)
The Body of Corn Mother - Penobscot Legend (North Americas)
Grandmother Bear Creates Nukuwee From Sugar Water, a Fish and a Tule Reed Basket - Pomo Mythology (California/North Americas)
Maiden Blood Moon Becomes Pregnant from the Spit in the Calabash Tree - Popol Vuh, Mayan Mythology ( Mesoamerica)
Maiden Blood Moon and the Corn Harvest Test - Popol Vuh, Mayan Mythology (Mesoamerica)
The Yucatec Sixth Heaven Above the Ceiba Tree - Mayan Mythology (Mesoamerica)
The Birth of Corn When Chaac Struck the Great Rock - Mayan Creation Myth (Mesoamerica)
The Hyacinth of Apollo - Greco-Roman Myth from Ovid’s Metamorphoses
Crocus and His Unrequited Love for Similax - Greco-Roman Mythology
The Birth of Bacchus and the Grape Vine - Greco-Roman Mythology
Seth Buries Adam and Plants Three Seeds of the Tree of Life in His father's Mouth - Medieval Cursor Mundi/ Christian Mythology (Ancient Near East)
How the Baobab Tree's " Bad Mouth" Angered Mwari and Why it Became the Upside-down Tree - Shona Mythology ( African Sub-Sahara)
The Alusi Create the First People and Protect Them With Umune Tree Leaves - Igbo Mythology (African Sub-Sahara)
Abuk's Millet - Dinka Nilotic Mythology (Southern Sudan)
The Great marriage of Ma with the Tree of Life - Bantu Creation Myth (African Sub-Sahara)
The Pine of Akoya - Japanese Folktale (Far East Asia)
Izanagi Angers His Wife and Tosses Her Bamboo Shoots with Grapes - Japanese Shinto Origin Myth (Far East Asia)
Shen Nong and the Tea Leaf - Taoist Chinese Origin Myth (Far East Asia)
The First Trees and Plants Sprouted from the Hairs of Pangu the Giant - Chinese Creation Myth (Far East Asia)
Taliesen the Son of the Goddess of Grain Transforms Himself - Welsh Celtic Mythology- (Northern Europe)
The Rowan Berries of Immortality- Gaelic/ Celtic Mythology - Pre-Christian Ireland (Northern Europe)
"Strong chieftains were the blackthorn With his ill fruit, The unbeloved whitethorn (hawthorn) Who wears the same suit." Cad Goddeu - Celtic Mythology (Northern Europe)
Odin’s Sacrifice at the Tree of Life - Norse Eddic Mythology - Pre-Christian (Northern Europe)
The Turmeric Paste Boy Who Became Ganesh - Hindu Mythology (Central Asia)
Satyabhama Orders Krishna to Steal the Parijata Tree - Harivansha Purana - Indo-Aryan Mythology (Central Asia)
Brahma is Born From the Lotus of Vishnu's Navel - Vaishnava Puranas - Indo-Aryan Creation (Central Asia)
The People Born of the Bamboo - Tagalog - Filipino Mythology (Southeast Asia)